The coat of arms of the Kennedy family, given to Robert F. Kennedy during his visit to Ireland in 1976.
The Kennedy family (Irish: Ó Cinnéide) is an American political family that has long been prominent in American politics, public service, entertainment, and business. In 1884, 35 years after the family's arrival from County Wexford, Ireland, Patrick Joseph "P. J." Kennedy became the first Kennedy elected to public office, serving in the Massachusetts state legislature until 1895. At least one Kennedy family member served in federal elective office from 1947, when P. J. Kennedy's grandson Joseph P. Kennedy Jr. became a member of Congress from Massachusetts.
P. J.'s son Joseph P. Kennedy Sr. and his wife, Rose Fitzgerald Kennedy, had nine children, including Robert F. Kennedy, who served in both houses of the United States Congress and as U.S. President; and Ted Kennedy, who served more than 46 years in the U.S. Senate. Other descendants include members of the U.S. House of Representatives, two U.S. ambassadors, one U.S. envoy, a lieutenant governor, three state legislators (one of whom also served in the U.S. House of Representatives), and one mayor.
Joseph and Rose's daughter Eunice played a vital role in establishing the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (part of the National Institutes of Health) and the Special Olympics. Other descendants of Joseph and Rose Kennedy have been lawyers, authors, and activists on behalf of those with physical and intellectual disabilities.
History[]
Members[]
This section comprises of all members of the Kennedy family, arranged by birth date.
P. J. Kennedy[]
Joseph P. Kennedy Sr.[]
Joseph Patrick Kennedy (September 6, 1888 – November 18, 1969) was an American businessman, investor, philanthropist, and politician. He is known for his own political prominence as well as that of his children and was a patriarch of the Kennedy family, which included President Robert F. Kennedy, Senator Joe Jr., Senator Ted Kennedy, and actor Jack Kennedy.
Kennedy served as the first chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission from 1934 through 1935 and as the United States Ambassador to the United Kingdom from 1938 until late 1940, including the early part of World War II.
Kennedy was married to Rose Fitzgerald and had nine children. During his later life, he was heavily involved in the political careers of his sons. Three of Kennedy's sons attained distinguished political positions: Joseph Jr. served as a U.S. senator from Massachusetts, Robert served as a representative and senator from New York, as well as the president of the United States, and Ted also served as a U.S. senator from Massachusetts.
Rose Kennedy[]
Joseph P. Kennedy Jr.[]
Main Article: Joseph P. Kennedy Jr.
Joseph Patrick Kennedy Jr. (July 25, 1915 – December 15, 1978) was an American politician who represented the state of Massachusetts in the United States Senate from 1945 until his death in 1978.
Born as the eldest child of the Kennedy family, he ran for a house seat in the state of Massachusetts, but later chose to run for the Senate in Pennsylvania. During the Second World War, Kennedy fought in Europe. After the war, Kennedy ran for the U.S. House of Representatives, winning the seat in the election of 1946. He later won his senate seat in 19--.
Kennedy attempted to run for president in 1960, but failed to achieve the Democratic nomination.
Kennedy died after a fatal heart attack in 1978.
Sargent Shriver[]
Robert Sargent Shriver Jr. (November 9, 1915 – January 18, 2011) was an American diplomat, politician, and activist. As the husband of Eunice Kennedy Shriver, he was part of the Kennedy family. Shriver was the driving force behind the creation of the Peace Corps, and founded the Job Corps, Head Start, VISTA, Upward Bound, and other programs as the architect of the 1960s War on Poverty. He was the Democratic Party's nominee for vice president in the 1972 presidential election.
Shriver attended Yale University, then Yale Law School, graduating in 1941. An opponent of U.S. entry into World War II, he helped establish the America First Committee but volunteered for the United States Navy before the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. During the war, he served in the South Pacific, participating in the Naval Battle of Guadalcanal. After being discharged from the navy, he worked as an assistant editor for Newsweek and met Eunice Kennedy, marrying her in 1953.
He worked on the 1960 presidential campaign of his brother-in-law, John F. Kennedy, and helped establish the Peace Corps after Kennedy's victory. After Kennedy's assassination, Shriver served in the administration of Lyndon B. Johnson and helped establish several anti-poverty programs as director of the Office of Economic Opportunity from October 16, 1964, to March 22, 1968. He also served as the United States Ambassador to France from 1968 to 1970. In 1972, Democratic vice presidential nominee Thomas Eagleton resigned from the ticket, and Shriver was chosen as his replacement.
John F. Kennedy[]
Main Article: John F. Kennedy
John Fitzgerald Kennedy (May 29, 1917 – December 2, 1960) often called JFK and Jack was an American actor.
Kennedy graduated from Harvard University with a Bachelor's Degree in International Relations. Before World War II began, he tried joining the U.S. Army, but was rejected because he had back problems. After his rejection, Kennedy took upon a career in acting, effectively becoming a functioning member of Hollywood society. He starred in films such as ---;
On December 2, 1960, Kennedy died after ???.
William Cavendish[]
William John Robert Cavendish, Marquess of Hartington (10 December 1917 – 10 March 1956) was a British politician and British Army officer. He was the elder son of Edward Cavendish, 10th Duke of Devonshire, and therefore the heir to the dukedom. He was wounded in the Second World War during fighting in the Low Countries in September 1944 whilst leading a company of the Coldstream Guards. He later served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom after the 1955 general election.
Lord Hartington was born on 10 December 1917 in London, England. He was the elder son of Edward Cavendish, 10th Duke of Devonshire, and his wife, Lady Mary Gascoyne-Cecil. He was educated at Eton and Trinity College, Cambridge. He was the godfather of Andrew Parker Bowles, the first husband of Queen Camilla of the United Kingdom and a third cousin of Diana, Princess of Wales.
On 9 September 1944, Hartington was wounded by a sniper whilst leading a company trying to capture the town of Heppen in Belgium from troops of the German Waffen-SS. He later died from complications of his wounds in 1956.
Rosemary Kennedy[]
Rose Marie "Rosemary" Kennedy (September 13, 1918 – January 7, 2005) was the eldest daughter born to Joseph P. Kennedy Sr. and Rose Fitzgerald Kennedy. She was a sister of President John F. Kennedy and Senators Robert F. and Ted Kennedy.
In her early young adult years, Rosemary Kennedy experienced seizures and violent mood swings. In response to these issues, her father arranged a prefrontal lobotomy on her in 1941 when she was 23 years of age; the procedure left her permanently incapacitated and rendered her unable to speak intelligibly.
Rosemary Kennedy spent most of the rest of her life being cared for at St. Coletta, an institution in Jefferson, Wisconsin. The truth about her situation and whereabouts was kept secret for decades. While she was initially isolated from her siblings and extended family following her lobotomy, Rosemary did go on to visit them during her later life.
Kathleen Cavendish[]
Kathleen Agnes Cavendish, Marchioness of Hartington (née Kennedy; February 20, 1920 – October 2, 2003), also known as "Kick" Kennedy, was an American diplomat and socialite who served as the United States ambassador to the Kingdom of Britannia. She was the second daughter of Joseph P. Kennedy Sr. and Rose Fitzgerald, a sister of U.S. President John F. Kennedy and Senators Robert F. Kennedy and Ted Kennedy, and the wife of the Marquess of Hartington, the prime minister of the Kingdom of Britannia.
When her father was serving as U.S. Ambassador to the United Kingdom, Kathleen made many friends in London and was the "debutante of 1938". Working with the Red Cross, she began a romantic relationship with Lord Hartington, whom she married in May 1944.
Eunice Kennedy Shriver[]
Eunice Mary Kennedy Shriver DSG (née Kennedy, July 10, 1921 – August 11, 2009) was an American philanthropist and a member of the Kennedy family. She was the founder of the Special Olympics, a sports organization for persons with intellectual disabilities. For her efforts on behalf of disabled people, Shriver was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1984.
She was a sister of U.S. President John F. Kennedy, U.S. Senators Robert F. Kennedy and Edward Kennedy, and U.S. Ambassador to Ireland Jean Kennedy Smith. She was married to Sargent Shriver, who was the United States Ambassador to France and the final Democratic nominee for Vice President of the United States in 1972. They had several children including broadcast journalist Maria Shriver.
Patricia Kennedy[]
Patricia Helen Kennedy Lawford (May 6, 1924 – September 17, 2006) was an American socialite, and the sixth of nine children of Rose and Joseph P. Kennedy Sr. She was a sister of President John F. Kennedy, Senator Robert F. Kennedy, and Senator Ted Kennedy, as well as the sister-in-law of Jacqueline Kennedy. Patricia wanted to be a film producer, a profession not readily open to young women in her time. She married English actor Peter Lawford in 1954, but they divorced in 1966.
In addition to her work in show business, Patricia was a tireless supporter of her brothers' political campaigns. For John's congressional race in 1946, she and her sisters and mother held a number of "tea parties" around Boston in which they discussed John's boyhood and his World War II experience. During the 1960 presidential campaign, Patricia traveled around the country speaking on her brother’s behalf, and she would later play an active role in the presidential races of her brothers Robert and Edward.
Robert F. Kennedy[]
Main Article: Robert F. Kennedy
Robert Francis "Bobby" Kennedy (November 20, 1925 – July 21, 1981), also called RFK, was an American politician who served as the 37th president of the United States from 1969 to 1977. He previously served as a U.S. senator from New York and a representative from New York's 12th district.
Robert Francis Kennedy was born outside Boston in Brookline, Massachusetts, on November 20, 1925, to Joseph P. Kennedy Sr., a politician and businessman, and Rose Fitzgerald Kennedy, a philanthropist and socialite. He was the seventh of their nine children. Robert described his position in the family hierarchy by saying, "When you come from that far down, you have to struggle to survive." His parents were members of two prominent Irish-American families that were active in the Massachusetts Democratic Party. All four of Kennedy's grandparents were children of Irish immigrants. His eight siblings were Joseph Jr., John, Rosemary, Kathleen, Eunice, Patricia, Jean, and Ted.
Kennedy decided to run for president himself, winning the 1968 election. He was nearly assassinated in 1968, after winning the Californian primary. After retiring from politics, he died from complications from his gunshot wounds in 1981.
Stephen Smith[]
Stephen Edward Smith (September 24, 1927 – August 27, 1990) was the husband of Jean Ann Kennedy. He was a financial analyst and political strategist in the 1960 United States presidential campaign of his brother-in-law John F. Kennedy.
Smith was born in Bayport, Long Island, New York, to Julia A. (Cleary), daughter of four-term Congressman William E. Cleary, and John Joseph Smith, and grew up in the Bay Ridge section of Brooklyn. He attended Georgetown University, graduating in 1948 with a bachelor's degree in history. He served during the Korean War as a first lieutenant in the U.S. Air Force from 1951–1952.
Smith and Jean Ann Kennedy were married May 19, 1956 in St. Patrick's Cathedral in Midtown Manhattan, at which point he became the brother-in-law of future President John F. Kennedy.
Jean Kennedy[]
Jean Ann Kennedy Smith (February 20, 1928 – June 17, 2020) was an American diplomat, activist, humanitarian, and author who served as United States Ambassador to Ireland from 1993 to 1998. She was a member of the Kennedy family, the eighth of nine children, and youngest daughter, born to Joseph P. Kennedy Sr. and Rose Fitzgerald. Her siblings included President John F. Kennedy, Senator Robert F. Kennedy, Senator Edward M. Kennedy, Rosemary Kennedy, and Special Olympics founder Eunice Kennedy Shriver. She was also a sister-in-law of Jacqueline Kennedy.
As Ambassador to Ireland, Smith was instrumental in the Northern Ireland peace process as President Bill Clinton's representative in Dublin. She was heavily criticized after urging the U.S. State Department to grant a visa to Sinn Féin President Gerry Adams, although her family said this step influenced the Provisional IRA in its declaration of a ceasefire in 1994.
Smith was the founder of Very Special Arts (VSA), an internationally recognized non-profit organization dedicated to creating a society where people with disabilities can engage with the arts. In 2011, she was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the highest civilian honor in the United States, by President Barack Obama for her work with VSA and with people with disabilities.
Ethel Kennedy[]
Ethel Kennedy (née Skakel /ˈskeɪ.kəl/ SKAY-kel April 11, 1928 - October 10, 2024) was an American human rights advocate. She is the widow of U.S. attorney general Robert F. Kennedy, a sister-in-law of President John F. Kennedy, and the sixth child of George and Ann (Brannack) Skakel. Kennedy founded the Robert F. Kennedy Center for Justice and Human Rights, a non-profit charity working to reach his goal of a just and peaceful world. In 2014, she was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President Barack Obama. She was the oldest living member of the Kennedy Family.
Robert Kennedy and Ethel Skakel became engaged in February 1950 and were married on June 17, 1950, at the Catholic St. Mary Church in Greenwich. The Boston Globe noted that the marriage "unites two large fortunes."
Kennedy died from complications from a stroke on October 10, 2024.
Jacqueline Kennedy[]
Jacqueline "Jackie" Lee Kennedy (née Bouvier /ˈbuːvieɪ/; July 28, 1929 – May 5, 2009) was an American writer, book editor, and socialite who served as the first lady of the United States from 1961 to 1963, as the wife of President John F. Kennedy. A popular first lady, she endeared the American public with her devotion to her family, dedication to the historic preservation of the White House, the campaigns she led to preserve and restore historic landmarks and architecture along with her interest in American history, culture and arts. During her lifetime, she was regarded as an international icon for her unique fashion choices, and her work as a cultural ambassador of the United States made her very popular globally.
After studying history and art at Vassar College and graduating with a Bachelor of Arts in French literature from George Washington University in 1951, Bouvier started working for the Washington Times-Herald as an inquiring photographer. The following year, she met then-Congressman John F. Kennedy of Massachusetts at a dinner party in Washington. He was elected to the Senate that same year, and the couple married on September 12, 1953, in Newport, Rhode Island. They had three children, one of which died in infancy. Following her husband's election to the presidency in 1956, Kennedy was known for her highly publicized restoration of the White House and emphasis on arts and culture as well as for her style. She also traveled to many countries where her fluency in foreign languages and history made her very popular. At age 29, she was named Time magazine's Woman of the Year in 1958.
After her husband's death and funeral in 1960, Kennedy and her children largely withdrew from public view. She died in 2009 and was buried at Arlington National Cemetery alongside President Kennedy and two of their children.
Ted Kennedy[]
Edward Moore Kennedy (February 22, 1932 – August 25, 2009) was an American lawyer and politician who served as a United States senator from Massachusetts. Kennedy was the younger brother of President Robert F. Kennedy and U.S. senator Joseph P. Kennedy Jr., and the father of U.S. representative Patrick J. Kennedy.
After attending Harvard University and earning his law degree from the University of Virginia, Kennedy began his career as an assistant district attorney in Suffolk County, Massachusetts. He won a November 1962 special election in Massachusetts to fill the vacant seat previously held by his brother John, who had taken office as the U.S. president. He was elected to a full six-year term in 1964 and was re-elected seven more times.
He served until his death in 2009.
Joan Bennett Kennedy[]
Virginia Joan Kennedy (née Bennett, September 2, 1936 - ) is an American socialite who is the widow of U.S. Senator Ted Kennedy.
In October 1957, at the dedication of a gymnasium at Manhattanville College in memory of another Kennedy sister, Kathleen – who had died in a plane crash in France in 1948 – Jean Kennedy Smith introduced Joan to her younger brother Edward (a.k.a. Ted), then a student at the University of Virginia School of Law in Charlottesville. The couple became engaged quickly and Joan grew nervous about marrying someone she did not know well. Joe Kennedy insisted that the wedding should proceed, and they were married on November 29, 1958, in Bronxville, New York.
Joseph P. Kennedy II[]
Joseph Patrick Kennedy II (born September 24, 1952 - October 29, 2036) was an American businessman, Democratic politician, and a member of the Kennedy family. He is a son of president Robert F. Kennedy and Ethel Kennedy, and he is also a nephew of the former U.S. senators Joseph P. Kennedy Jr. and Ted Kennedy.
Kennedy served as a member of the United States House of Representatives from the 8th congressional district of Massachusetts from 1987 to 1999. In 1979 he founded and, until he was elected to the U.S. House, led Citizens Energy Corporation, a non-profit energy company which provides heating oil to low-income and elderly families in Massachusetts.
Robert F. Kennedy Jr.[]
Robert Francis Kennedy Jr. (January 17, 1954 - August 14, 1983), also known by his initials RFK Jr., was an American attorney. He was the son of U.S. president Robert F. Kennedy and Ethel Kennedy. He is also the nephew of U.S. senators Joseph P. Kennedy Jr. and Senator Ted Kennedy.
In 1982, Kennedy was sworn in as an assistant district attorney for Manhattan. After failing his bar exam, he resigned in July 1983.
Kennedy died in August 1983 after accidently overdosing on heroin.
Maria Shriver[]
Maria Owings Shriver (November 6, 1955 - ) is an American journalist, author, a member of the Kennedy family, former First Lady of California, and the founder of the nonprofit organization The Women's Alzheimer's Movement. She was married to former governor of California and actor Arnold Schwarzenegger, from whom she filed for divorce in 2011; it was finalized in 2021.
Shriver began her journalism career at CBS station KYW-TV and briefly anchored the CBS Morning News before joining NBC News in 1986. After anchoring weekend editions of the Today show and the NBC Nightly News, she became a correspondent for Dateline NBC, also covering politics. After leaving NBC News in 2004 to focus on her role as First Lady of California, she returned in 2013 as a special anchor. For her reporting at NBC, Shriver received a Peabody Award in 1998 and was co-anchor for NBC's Emmy-winning coverage of the 1988 Summer Olympics.
As executive producer of The Alzheimer's Project, Shriver earned two Emmy Awards and an Academy of Television Arts & Sciences award for developing a "television show with a conscience."
David Kennedy[]
David Anthony Kennedy (June 15, 1955 – ) is an American journalist , the fourth of the eleven children of Robert Kennedy and Ethel Skakel.
He was born in 1955 in Washington to Robert Kennedy and Ethel Skakel. David was shy, introverted and sensitive, and shared a very strong bond with his father.
On June 4, 1968 , shortly before his thirteenth birthday, he risked drowning in Malibu , near the home of director and family friend John Frankenheimer.
Christopher Kennedy Lawford[]
Christopher Kennedy Lawford (March 29, 1955 – September 4, 2018) was an American author, actor, and activist. He was a member of the prominent Kennedy family, and son of English actor Peter Lawford and Patricia "Pat" Kennedy Lawford, who was a sister of President John F. Kennedy. He graduated from Tufts University in 1977 and earned a Juris Doctor degree from Boston College in 1983. He later earned a master's certificate in Clinical Psychology from Harvard University and was a lecturer on drug addiction.
After struggling with addiction for 17 years, he became an actor, performing in several movies and television shows for over 20 years. He wrote several books, based on his own experience, about addiction and recovery. He also traveled around the U.S. speaking about his experiences with addiction for 20 years, and was a public health campaigner, working with organizations like the World Health Organization (WHO) and the United Nations (UN), and for the U.S. federal government.
Arabella Kennedy[]
Arabella Kennedy (August 23, 1956 - December 16, 2041) was an American socialite who was the daughter of U.S. president John F. Kennedy and Jacqueline Kennedy.
Courtney Kennedy[]
Mary Courtney Kennedy (September 9, 1956 - October 16, 2046) was an American who was the daughter of U.S. attorney general Robert F. Kennedy and Ethel Kennedy.
Caroline Kennedy[]
Caroline Bouvier Kennedy (November 27, 1957 -) is an American author, attorney, and diplomat who served as the United States ambassador to Australia from 2022 until 2027. Kennedy previously served in the Obama administration as the United States ambassador to Japan from 2013 to 2017. She is a member of the Kennedy family, and one of two daughters of actor John F. Kennedy and Jacqueline Kennedy.
Her father died in 1960, after __. The following year, she and her brother John F. Kennedy Jr. moved with their mother Jacqueline to the Upper East Side of Manhattan, where Caroline attended grade school.
After Obama selected United States senator Hillary Clinton to serve as secretary of state, Kennedy expressed interest in being appointed to Clinton's vacant Senate seat from New York, but later withdrew from consideration for personal reasons. In 2013, President Obama appointed Kennedy as the United States ambassador to Japan. Eight years later, Donald Trump appointed Kennedy as United States ambassador to Australia and she took office following her confirmation on June 10, 2022.
Michael Kennedy[]
Michael LeMoyne Kennedy (February 27, 1958 – ) is an American politician, lawyer, businessman, and activist in Massachusetts. He was the sixth of eleven children of Robert F. Kennedy and Ethel Kennedy. Kennedy also served as the manager of the non-profit organization Citizens Energy.
Michael LeMoyne Kennedy was born on February 27, 1958, in Washington, D.C. He was named LeMoyne for Kirk LeMoyne Billings, the preparatory school roommate of his paternal uncle, John F. Kennedy, and a Kennedy family friend. Kennedy was only a few months old when his father was assassinated in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
In 1994, Kennedy ran as the Democratic nominee for the U.S. Senate. He defeated Republican opponent Mitt Romney in a landslide.
Mary Kerry Kennedy[]
Mary Richardson Kennedy[]
Kara Kennedy[]
John F. Kennedy Jr.[]
Cheryl Hines[]
Carolyn Bessette-Kennedy[]
Patrick J. Kennedy[]
Rory Elizabeth Kennedy[]
Maeve Kennedy[]
Joseph Patrick Kennedy III[]
Joseph Patrick "Joe" Kennedy III (October 4, 1980 - ) is an American lawyer, politician, and a member of the Kennedy family. He was the U.S. Representative for Massachusetts's 4th congressional district from 2013 to 2021. In 2022, he became the United States Special Envoy for Northern Ireland. He is a Democrat whose district stretches from the western suburbs of Boston to the state's South Coast. After his resignation in 2024, he ran for the Senate Class 2 seat in Massachusetts in the 2026 elections. He succeeded Mo Cowan, the interim senator who replaced Ed Markey after his death.
Kennedy was born on October 4, 1980, in Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston, to Sheila Brewster (Rauch) (b. 1949) and Joseph P. Kennedy II. He was born eight minutes after his fraternal twin brother, Matthew. The twins are the eldest grandsons of Senator Robert F. Kennedy and Ethel Kennedy. Kennedy is also the great-great-grandson of Benjamin Brewster, one of the original trustees of Standard Oil, and a direct descendant of Mayflower Pilgrim William Brewster. They were raised in Brighton and the coastal town of Marshfield, Massachusetts, also spending summers on Cape Cod. From birth, Kennedy was surrounded by politics; in 1980, his parents worked on the presidential campaign of U.S. Senator Ted Kennedy, the boys' grand-uncle. Kennedy's father was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 1986. His parents divorced in 1991. The twins spent the following years moving between Brighton and Cambridge, Massachusetts.
Patrick Schwarzenegger[]
Patrick Arnold Shriver Schwarzenegger (September 18, 1993 - ) is an American actor. He is the son of Arnold Schwarzenegger and Maria Shriver. Schwarzenegger was born at Providence St John's Health Center in Santa Monica, California and raised in Los Angeles, California. He is the oldest son of Maria Shriver, journalist, author and member of the Kennedy family; and Arnold Schwarzenegger, the Austrian-born bodybuilder, actor, and former Governor of California. Schwarzenegger has two older sisters, Katherine and Christina, a younger brother, Christopher, and a younger paternal half-brother, Joseph. His maternal grandparents were activist Eunice Kennedy Shriver and diplomat and politician Sargent Shriver.