caroline kennedy biography book

Caroline Kennedy

Who Is Caroline Kennedy?

Caroline Bouvier Kennedy was born on November 27, 1957, in New York City, to Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis and John F. Kennedy. Caroline spent her early years living in the White House during her father's term as president. His time in office is often referred to as the "Camelot Presidency" for the hope and optimism the young politician brought to America. As a result, the Kennedys were thrust into the spotlight as the ideal American family. Caroline was a frequent media darling; people couldn't get enough of the little girl who walked her father to the Oval Office each morning, and rode her pony on the White House lawn.

Not everything in the Kennedy household was idyllic, however, and the family suffered numerous tragedies. Among them were Jackie's miscarriages, one occurring 15 months before Caroline was born and another three years later on August 7, 1963; a premature baby boy, whom the Kennedys named Patrick. But chief among the losses that affected Caroline directly came on November 22, 1963, when her father was assassinated by sniper fire. Caroline was not yet six years old at the time. The iconic image of her holding her mother's hand and her brother John Jr. saluting John F. Kennedy's flag-draped coffin during the nationally televised funeral procession remains one of the most tragic moments in American presidential history.

Two weeks after the assassination, Jackie and the children moved out of the White House and into a home in Georgetown. However, life grew difficult for the Kennedy clan with an ongoing circus-like atmosphere of media and curious onlookers descending on their home. By the summer of 1964, the family moved to New York City. There, the family enjoyed some degree of anonymity and less aggressive paparazzi. That September, like generations of Kennedy women before her, Caroline was enrolled in the Sacred Heart School.

By the late 1960s, the family had established a quiet New York City life. But in 1968, Caroline and John Jr.'s lives were shattered again with the assassination of their beloved uncle and U.S. Senator, Robert F. Kennedy. Jackie became frightened for the safety of her children. Four months after Bobby’s death, Jackie married Greek Shipping magnate, Aristotle Onassis. Onassis would shower Caroline and her brother with gifts, but Caroline couldn’t quite accept him and there were also tensions between his children and Jackie. Caroline often turned to her uncle, U.S. Senator Edward "Ted" Kennedy, for comfort and the two became very close.

Onassis provided security for the family when they were in New York. During vacations and breaks, the family would spend time in Greece, or sailing their yacht around the Caribbean. In 1969, Caroline enrolled at The Brearley School, an exclusive all-girls school on the tony Upper East Side of Manhattan, where she excelled as a student and as a budding photographer. She next attended Concord Academy in Massachusetts; it was the first time she lived away from her mother. During this time, Jackie’s marriage to Onassis began to unravel. Her stepfather was devastated by the loss of his 24-year old son Alexander, who had died after a plane crash in 1973. Aristotle Onassis died in March 1975. After his death, Jackie moved back to New York City permanently and went to work as an editor at Viking Press. She continued to try and shield her children from the public eye, often keeping them away from their rebellious, scandal-making cousins.

Growing Up in the Spotlight

As a result of their mother's guidance, Caroline and her brother stayed away from drugs and alcohol, instead becoming conscientious students. Caroline performed well in New York private school, and went on to attend Radcliffe College (now part of Harvard) for her undergraduate studies. In addition to her courseload, the young Kennedy interned for the New York Daily News and worked in the summers as a political intern for her uncle, Ted Kennedy.

After earning her bachelor's degree in 1980, Caroline worked at the Metropolitan Museum of Art where she met her future husband, an interactive-media designer named Edwin Schlossberg. She also began serving as president of the John F. Kennedy Library Foundation, a nonprofit organization dedicated to providing financial support, staffing and creative resources to the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum.

On July 19, 1986, Caroline Kennedy married 41-year-old Schlossberg in an elaborate Cape Cod, Massachusetts wedding. Despite the family's efforts to avoid publicity, the wedding became a topic of wide interest in the media. A crowd of more than 2,000 spectators surrounded the church and a nearby hillside.

Advanced Education

Interested in politics, but not the limelight, Caroline quietly entered Columbia Law School. She graduated with little fanfare in 1988, during a private pre-commencement ceremony along with 380 other students. That same year, she gave birth to her first child, Rose. In 1989, the young lawyer stayed busy by establishing the Profile in Courage Awards, which honors elected officials who have shown political courage. She also began research on her first book.

Fascinated with constitutional law, Caroline co-wrote In Our Defense: The Bill of Rights in Action with fellow law graduate Ellen Alderman. She refused to use her mother's publishing industry contacts, instead publishing the book through William Morrow & Co. in February 1991. She also surprised Washington officials and stumped the media the next year, when she turned down an offer to be chairwoman of the 1992 Democratic National Convention. Instead, the private Kennedy invested time in her family and personal projects.

More Family Tragedy

In 1994, Jackie Kennedy passed away after a long battle with lymphatic cancer. As a tribute to her mother's work in the arts, Caroline took on Jackie's role as the honorary chairperson at the American Ballet Theatre. In addition to her charitable work, Caroline co-wrote another book entitled The Right to Privacy (1995). She also took up her role as the guardian of the Kennedy name, spending several difficult months trying to settle her mother's $200 million estate while under heavy public scrutiny.

In 1998, Caroline and her brother went public in an auction dispute against Evelyn Lincoln, President John F. Kennedy's former secretary, who attempted to sell "intensely personal" pieces of memorabilia that belonged to their father.

On July 16, 1999, Caroline endured more hardship when her only sibling, brother John F. Kennedy Jr., was killed along with his wife and sister-in-law, in a plane crash near Martha's Vineyard, Massachusetts. While the tragedy's effect on Caroline was kept private, the only remaining heir to the Kennedy legacy quickly took up the family mantle. In 2000, she finally agreed to become a speaker at the 2000 Democratic National Convention.

Work and Politics

She also kept writing. To honor her late mother, Caroline Kennedy helped create The Best-Loved Poems of Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis , published in 2001. She has also served as editor for two other anthologies: Profiles in Courage for Our Time (2002) and A Patriot's Handbook: Songs, Poems and Speeches Every American Should Know (2003). She published A Family of Poems: My Favorite Poetry for Children in 2005, and her latest work, A Family Christmas, in 2007.

Caroline Kennedy serves as a member of the national board of directors for the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, vice chair for the Fund for Public Schools in New York City, and chief executive for the New York City Department of Education Office of Strategic Partnerships.

In 2008, the famously private Caroline Kennedy made headlines when she was rumored as a possible candidate for Hillary Clinton's vacant Senate seat. Caroline later withdrew her bid for the post, citing personal reasons.

Japan's U.S. Ambassador

On July 24, 2013, Caroline was nominated U.S. ambassador to Japan by President Barack Obama, putting to rest much speculation in the media regarding her likelihood to win the title. She was officially approved by the U.S. Senate in October. Caroline succeeded John Roos, who had served as Japan's U.S. ambassador since August 2009. Among those to formerly hold the role are Walter Mondale, Howard Baker and Tom Foley.

Personal Life

Caroline Kennedy and Edwin Schlossberg have three children: Rose, Tatiana and Jack.

Watch the full biography of Caroline Kennedy on HISTORY Vault

QUICK FACTS

• Name: Caroline Kennedy
• Birth Year: 1957
• Birth date: November 27, 1957
• Birth State: New York
• Birth City: New York
• Birth Country: United States
• Gender: Female
• Best Known For: Writer, lawyer and diplomat, Caroline Kennedy is the only surviving child of John F. Kennedy and Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis.
• Journalism and Nonfiction
• Astrological Sign: Sagittarius
• Radcliffe College
• Columbia Law School

We strive for accuracy and fairness.If you see something that doesn't look right, contact us !

CITATION INFORMATION

• Article Title: Caroline Kennedy Biography
• Author: Biography.com Editors
• Website Name: The Biography.com website
• Url: https://www.biography.com/history-culture/caroline-kennedy
• Access Date:
• Publisher: A&E; Television Networks
• Last Updated: September 15, 2022
• Original Published Date: April 3, 2014
• As much as we need a prosperous economy, we also need a prosperity of kindness and decency.

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Caroline Kennedy Biography: Navigating the Spotlight, A Woman of Intellect, Compassion, and Global Impact Kindle Edition

• Print length 25 pages
• Language English
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• Publication date December 3, 2023
• File size 326 KB
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• ASIN ‏ : ‎ B0CPDK53R4
• Publication date ‏ : ‎ December 3, 2023
• Language ‏ : ‎ English
• File size ‏ : ‎ 326 KB
• Simultaneous device usage ‏ : ‎ Unlimited
• Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
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• Sticky notes ‏ : ‎ On Kindle Scribe
• Print length ‏ : ‎ 25 pages

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Biography of Caroline Kennedy

Heiress to a Political Dynasty

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• B.A., Political Science, Rutgers University

Caroline Bouvier Kennedy (born November 27, 1957) is an American author, lawyer, and diplomat. She is the child of President John F. Kennedy and Jacqueline Bouvier . Caroline Kennedy served as the U.S. ambassador to Japan from 2013-2017.

Early Years

Caroline Kennedy was just three years old when her father took the Oath of Office and the family moved from their Georgetown home into the White House. She and her younger brother, John Jr., spent their afternoons in the outdoor play area, complete with a treehouse, that Jackie had designed for them. The children loved animals, and the Kennedy White House was home to puppies, ponies, and Caroline's cat, Tom Kitten.

Caroline's happy childhood was interrupted by a series of tragedies that would change the course of her life. On August 7, 1963, her brother Patrick was born prematurely and died the next day. Just months later, on November 22 nd , her father was assassinated in Dallas, Texas. Jackie and her two young children moved back to their Georgetown home two weeks later. Caroline's uncle, Robert F. Kennedy, became a surrogate father to her in the years following her father's death, and her world was rocked again when he, too, was assassinated in 1968 .

Caroline's first classroom was in the White House. Jackie Kennedy organized the exclusive kindergarten herself, hiring two teachers to instruct Caroline and sixteen other children whose parents worked in the White House. The children wore red, white, and blue uniforms, and studied American history, mathematics, and French.

In the summer of 1964, Jackie moved her family to Manhattan, where they would be out of the political spotlight. Caroline enrolled at the Convent of the Sacred Heart School on 91 st St., the same school that Rose Kennedy, her grandmother, had attended as a girl. Caroline transferred to the Brearley School, an exclusive private girls' school on the Upper East Side in the fall of 1969.

In 1972, Caroline left New York to enroll at the elite Concord Academy, a progressive boarding school outside of Boston. These years away from home proved formative for Caroline, as could explore her own interests without interference from her mother or stepfather, Aristotle Onassis. She graduated in June 1975.

Caroline Kennedy earned a bachelor's degree in fine arts from Radcliffe College in 1980. During her summer breaks, she interned for her uncle, Senator Ted Kennedy. She also spent a summer working as a messenger and assistant for the New York Daily News . She once dreamed of becoming a photojournalist, but soon realized that being so publicly recognizable would make it impossible for her to surreptitiously photograph others.

In 1988, Caroline earned a law degree from Columbia Law School. She passed the New York state bar examination the following year.

Professional Life

After earning her B.A., Caroline went to work in the Film and Television Department of the Metropolitan Museum of Art. She left the Met in 1985, when she enrolled in law school.

In the 1980's, Caroline Kennedy became more involved in continuing her father's legacy. She joined the board of directors for the John F. Kennedy Library, and is currently the president of the Kennedy Library Foundation. In 1989, she created the Profile in Courage Award, with the goal of honoring those who demonstrate political courage in a manner similar to the leaders profiled in her father's book, "Profiles in Courage." Caroline also serves as an adviser to the Harvard Institute of Politics, which was conceived as a living memorial to JFK.

From 2002 to 2004, Kennedy served as CEO of the Office of Strategic Partnerships for the New York City Board of Education. She accepted a salary of just $1 for her work, which netted over $65 million in private funding for the school district.

When Hillary Clinton accepted the nomination to become Secretary of State in 2009, Caroline Kennedy initially expressed interest in being appointed to represent New York in her place. The Senate seat was previously held by her late uncle Robert F. Kennedy. But a month later, Caroline Kennedy withdrew her name from consideration for personal reasons.

In 2013, President Barack Obama nominated Caroline Kennedy to be U.S. Ambassador to Japan. Though some noted her lack of foreign policy experience, her appointment was approved unanimously by the U.S. Senate. In a 2015 interview for 60 Minutes , Kennedy noted that she was welcomed by the Japanese in part because of their memory of her father.

"People in Japan very much admire him. It's one of the ways that many people learned English. Almost every day somebody comes up to me and wants to quote the inaugural address."

Publications

Caroline Kennedy has co-authored two books on the law, and has also edited and published several other best-selling collections.

• "In Our Defense: The Bill of Rights in Action" (with Ellen Alderman, 1991)
• "The Right to Privacy" (with Ellen Alderman, 1995)
• "The Best-Loved Poems of Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis" (2001)
• "Profiles in Courage for Our Time" (2002)
• "A Patriot's Handbook" (2003)
• "A Family of Poems: My Favorite Poetry for Children" (2005)
• "A Family Christmas" (2007)
• "She Walks in Beauty: A Woman's Journey Through Poems" (2011)

Personal Life

In 1978, while Caroline was still at Radcliffe, her mother, Jackie, invited a co-worker to dinner to meet Caroline. Tom Carney was a Yale graduate from a wealthy Irish Catholic family. He and Caroline were immediately drawn to one another and soon seemed destined for marriage, but after two years of living in the Kennedy spotlight, Carney ended the relationship.

While working at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Caroline met exhibit designer Edwin Schlossberg, and the two soon began dating. They married on July 19, 1986, at the Church of Our Lady of Victory on Cape Cod. Caroline's brother John served as best man, and her cousin Maria Shriver, herself newly married to Arnold Schwarzenegger, was her matron of honor. Ted Kennedy walked Caroline down the aisle.

Caroline and her husband Edwin have three children: Rose Kennedy Schlossberg, born June 25, 1988; Tatiana Celia Kennedy Schlossberg, born May 5, 1990; and John Bouvier Kennedy Schlossberg, born January 19, 1993.

More Kennedy Tragedies

Caroline Kennedy suffered more devastating losses as an adult. David Anthony Kennedy, Robert F. Kennedy's son and Caroline's first cousin, died of a drug overdose in a Palm Beach hotel room in 1984. In 1997, Michael Kennedy, another of Bobby's sons, died in a skiing accident in Colorado.

The losses hit closer to home, too. Jacqueline Bouvier Kennedy Onassis died of cancer on May 19, 1994. The loss of their mother brought Caroline and her brother John Jr. even closer together than before. Just eight months later, they lost their grandmother Rose, the matriarch of the Kennedy clan , to pneumonia at the age of 104.

On July 16, 1999, John Jr., his wife Carolyn Bessette Kennedy, and his sister-in-law Lauren Bessette all boarded John's small plane to fly to a family wedding on Martha's Vineyard. All three were killed when the plane crashed into the sea en route. Carolyn became the lone survivor of JFK's family. 

Ten years later, on August 25, 2009, Carolyn's uncle Ted succumbed to brain cancer.

Famous Quotes

"Growing up in politics I know that women decide all elections because we do all the work."

"People don't always realize that my parents shared a sense of intellectual curiosity and a love of reading and of history."

"Poetry is really a way of sharing feelings and ideas."

"To the extent that we are all educated and informed, we will be more equipped to deal with the gut issues that tend to divide us."

"I feel that my father's greatest legacy was the people he inspired to get involved in public service and their communities, to join the Peace Corps, to go into space. And really that generation transformed this country in civil rights, social justice, the economy and everything."

Andersen, Christopher P.  Sweet Caroline: Last Child of Camelot . Wheeler Pub., 2004.

Heymann, C. David.  American Legacy: the Story of John and Caroline Kennedy . Simon & Schuster, 2008.

“Kennedy, Caroline B.”  U.S. Department of State , U.S. Department of State, 2009-2017.state.gov/r/pa/ei/biog/217581.htm.

O'Donnell, Norah. “Kennedy name still resonates in Japan.”  CBS News , CBS Interactive, 13 Apr. 2015, www.cbsnews.com/news/ambassador-to-japan-caroline-kennedy-60-minutes/.

Zengerle;, Patricia. “U.S. Senate confirms Kennedy as ambassador to Japan.”  Reuters , Thomson Reuters, 16 Oct. 2013, www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-japan-kennedy/u-s-senate-confirms-kennedy-as-ambassador-to-japan-idUSBRE99G03W20131017.

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From inside the book

Other editions - view all, common terms and phrases, about the author  (2007).

C. David Heymann is the New York Times bestselling author of several biographies, including Bobby and Jackie, American Legacy, The Georgetown Ladies' Social Club, and RFK: A Candid Biography of Robert F. Kennedy. He lives and works in Manhattan.

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