Count Gottfried Alexander Leopold von Bismarck-Schönhausen (Gottfried Alexander Leopold Graf von Bismarck-Schönhausen in German; 19 September 1962 – 29 June 2007) was a German businessman, socialite and member of the princely German House of Bismarck. Bismarck was noted for his flamboyant lifestyle that some called ‘dissolute’ after he died, and his homes were linked to two deaths from narcotics, but he was not found responsible for either. He died of a cocaine overdose in 2007.
Count Gottfried von Bismarck
Born
Gottfried Alexander Leopold Graf von Bismarck-Schönhausen (1962-09-19)19 September 1962 Uccle, Belgium
Died
29 June 2007(2007-06-29) (aged 44) London, England
Bismarck's great uncle and namesake Count Gottfried was a Nazi official who may have been part of the 20 July plot to assassinate Adolf Hitler. His younger sister Vanessa Gräfin von Bismarck-Schönhausen (born 26 March 1971, Hamburg) is a public relations agent in the United States. His elder brother Carl-Eduard Fürst von Bismarck-Schönhausen (born 1961) was a member (MP) of the German Bundestag.[1][2] His younger brother Count Gregor von Bismarck-Schönhausen (born 1964) became the heir of the family estates according to the Will of his father.
Early life and educationedit
Bismarck grew up primarily in his family's ancestral estate near Hamburg. He attended school in Germany and Switzerland, had a brief internship at the New York Stock Exchange, then enrolled at Christ Church, Oxford University, where he studied Philosophy, Politics and Economics (PPE) earning a third class honours degree. He was a member of the exclusive Piers Gaveston Society, "noted for its predilection for rubber wear and whips, which he embellished with his androgynous apparel and lipstick", as well as the prohibitively expensive Bullingdon Club, known for its members' wealth and destructive binges, alongside friends like Darius Guppy.[3] Confessing that he did not enjoy the typical social life in Oxford, he and his friends escaped to the wild, fashionable parties in London on the weekends or whenever possible. He reportedly drank heavily at night and took amphetamines by day to concentrate on his studies.[4]
Narcotics incident at universityedit
The death of heiress Olivia Channon, the daughter of the English Conservative politician Paul Channon, had a devastating effect on Bismarck's life.[4] She had been found dead from a heroin overdose in his rooms at Christ Church in 1986, but he was not present at the time. Bismarck was charged with drug possession and fined £80 at an Oxford Magistrates Court. The shadow of Channon's death haunted him, and he was said to have "wept like a child" at her funeral.[4] His father Prince Ferdinand recalled him to Germany for treatment at a private clinic, and it was said he left Oxford so quickly that a family servant had to settle his bills with pubs, tailors and restaurants.[3]
Business careeredit
After completion of his studies at a German university, where he wrote a doctoral thesis on the East German telephone system, Bismarck visited the family estate at Schönhausen, which was lost under communist rule in East Germany.[3] This was a powerful personal experience for him. Later, after having spent some time in Los Angeles, he went to work as an executive for the now defunct Telemonde with the intent to raise capital from the stock market before its collapse in 2002. He returned to London soon after and became a promoter of holidays in Uzbekistan. He was a co-founding executive with AIM Partners, a London-based investment firm.[3] However, his father often had to settle his debts.
Narcotics incident 2006edit
In August 2006, Anthony Casey, 41, fell 20 m (60 ft) from Bismarck's flat in Chelsea and died. Bismarck was not arrested and the police said there were no drugs found in his flat. Nevertheless, the event re-awakened the so-called "curse" from the past and triggered speculation from the tabloids. The coroner's report had found no alcohol in Casey's body, but did find a significant amount of cocaine.[citation needed]
The coroner Dr Paul Knapman told The Guardian that a great deal of sexual paraphernalia was discovered in the flat, including sex toys and lubricants.[5] "In common parlance, in the early hours of the morning, there was a gay orgy going on", Dr. Knapman told the newspaper. "Nevertheless, this was conducted by consenting males in private." The claim that a "gay orgy" took place was officially denied by Bismarck.
Deathedit
In early 2007, Bismarck discreetly moved in with an old friend on Portobello Road, Notting Hill. He had been heard to say that he was deeply saddened that his life had brought so much shame upon his family. Friends were relieved he was making such a concerted effort to clean up his life and that he was being helped to start afresh in a new environment. On 2 July 2007, he was found dead in the almost empty £5 million flat, which was in the process of being sold. He was 44 years old. An inquest into the circumstances was opened on 6 July 2007. Sebastien Lucas, the pathologist who carried out the post-mortem examination, said that Bismarck had been injecting cocaine on an hourly basis on the day before his death, and that his body contained the highest level of cocaine that he had ever seen, as well as morphine; he also had liver damage, hepatitis B, hepatitis C, and HIV.[6]
^ abLeo van de Pas. . Worldroots. Archived from the original on 6 July 2008. Retrieved 5 July 2007.
^Hein Bruin (4 July 2007). . Heins Page. Archived from the original on 11 January 2013. Retrieved 5 July 2007.
^ abcd"Count Gottfried von Bismarck Obituary". The Daily Telegraph. 5 July 2007. from the original on 15 May 2008. Retrieved 5 July 2007.
^ abcStuart Wavell (27 August 2006). "The Curse of the Count". Sunday Times. London. from the original on 12 April 2023. Retrieved 5 July 2007.
^Fred Attewill (6 October 2006). "Fatal fall after 'gay orgy' was misadventure". The Guardian. from the original on 12 April 2023. Retrieved 5 July 2007.
^Cahal Milmo (11 October 2007). "Bismarck died after injecting cocaine 'every hour for a day'". The Independent. Archived from the original on 11 July 2012. Retrieved 12 October 2007.
October 31, 2023
gottfried, bismarck, count, gottfried, alexander, leopold, bismarck, schönhausen, gottfried, alexander, leopold, graf, bismarck, schönhausen, german, september, 1962, june, 2007, german, businessman, socialite, member, princely, german, house, bismarck, bismar. Count Gottfried Alexander Leopold von Bismarck Schonhausen Gottfried Alexander Leopold Graf von Bismarck Schonhausen in German 19 September 1962 29 June 2007 was a German businessman socialite and member of the princely German House of Bismarck Bismarck was noted for his flamboyant lifestyle that some called dissolute after he died and his homes were linked to two deaths from narcotics but he was not found responsible for either He died of a cocaine overdose in 2007 Count Gottfried von BismarckBornGottfried Alexander Leopold Graf von Bismarck Schonhausen 1962 09 19 19 September 1962Uccle BelgiumDied29 June 2007 2007 06 29 aged 44 London EnglandNoble familyBismarckFatherFerdinand Prince of BismarckMotherCountess Elisabeth Lippens Contents 1 Family 2 Early life and education 3 Narcotics incident at university 4 Business career 5 Narcotics incident 2006 6 Death 7 Ancestry 8 See also 9 ReferencesFamily editBorn in Uccle Belgium 1 Gottfried von Bismarck Schonhausen was the second son of Ferdinand Prince von Bismarck and grandson of Otto Prince von Bismarck a diplomat at Germany s embassy in London until a feud with Third Reich foreign minister Joachim von Ribbentrop He was the great great grandson of German Chancellor Otto von Bismarck Bismarck s great uncle and namesake Count Gottfried was a Nazi official who may have been part of the 20 July plot to assassinate Adolf Hitler His younger sister Vanessa Grafin von Bismarck Schonhausen born 26 March 1971 Hamburg is a public relations agent in the United States His elder brother Carl Eduard Furst von Bismarck Schonhausen born 1961 was a member MP of the German Bundestag 1 2 His younger brother Count Gregor von Bismarck Schonhausen born 1964 became the heir of the family estates according to the Will of his father Early life and education editBismarck grew up primarily in his family s ancestral estate near Hamburg He attended school in Germany and Switzerland had a brief internship at the New York Stock Exchange then enrolled at Christ Church Oxford University where he studied Philosophy Politics and Economics PPE earning a third class honours degree He was a member of the exclusive Piers Gaveston Society noted for its predilection for rubber wear and whips which he embellished with his androgynous apparel and lipstick as well as the prohibitively expensive Bullingdon Club known for its members wealth and destructive binges alongside friends like Darius Guppy 3 Confessing that he did not enjoy the typical social life in Oxford he and his friends escaped to the wild fashionable parties in London on the weekends or whenever possible He reportedly drank heavily at night and took amphetamines by day to concentrate on his studies 4 Narcotics incident at university editThe death of heiress Olivia Channon the daughter of the English Conservative politician Paul Channon had a devastating effect on Bismarck s life 4 She had been found dead from a heroin overdose in his rooms at Christ Church in 1986 but he was not present at the time Bismarck was charged with drug possession and fined 80 at an Oxford Magistrates Court The shadow of Channon s death haunted him and he was said to have wept like a child at her funeral 4 His father Prince Ferdinand recalled him to Germany for treatment at a private clinic and it was said he left Oxford so quickly that a family servant had to settle his bills with pubs tailors and restaurants 3 Business career editAfter completion of his studies at a German university where he wrote a doctoral thesis on the East German telephone system Bismarck visited the family estate at Schonhausen which was lost under communist rule in East Germany 3 This was a powerful personal experience for him Later after having spent some time in Los Angeles he went to work as an executive for the now defunct Telemonde with the intent to raise capital from the stock market before its collapse in 2002 He returned to London soon after and became a promoter of holidays in Uzbekistan He was a co founding executive with AIM Partners a London based investment firm 3 However his father often had to settle his debts Narcotics incident 2006 editIn August 2006 Anthony Casey 41 fell 20 m 60 ft from Bismarck s flat in Chelsea and died Bismarck was not arrested and the police said there were no drugs found in his flat Nevertheless the event re awakened the so called curse from the past and triggered speculation from the tabloids The coroner s report had found no alcohol in Casey s body but did find a significant amount of cocaine citation needed The coroner Dr Paul Knapman told The Guardian that a great deal of sexual paraphernalia was discovered in the flat including sex toys and lubricants 5 In common parlance in the early hours of the morning there was a gay orgy going on Dr Knapman told the newspaper Nevertheless this was conducted by consenting males in private The claim that a gay orgy took place was officially denied by Bismarck Death editIn early 2007 Bismarck discreetly moved in with an old friend on Portobello Road Notting Hill He had been heard to say that he was deeply saddened that his life had brought so much shame upon his family Friends were relieved he was making such a concerted effort to clean up his life and that he was being helped to start afresh in a new environment On 2 July 2007 he was found dead in the almost empty 5 million flat which was in the process of being sold He was 44 years old An inquest into the circumstances was opened on 6 July 2007 Sebastien Lucas the pathologist who carried out the post mortem examination said that Bismarck had been injecting cocaine on an hourly basis on the day before his death and that his body contained the highest level of cocaine that he had ever seen as well as morphine he also had liver damage hepatitis B hepatitis C and HIV 6 Ancestry editAncestors of Gottfried von Bismarck16 Prince Otto Eduard von Bismarck8 Prince Herbert von Bismarck17 Johanna von Puttkamer4 Prince Otto Christian von Bismarck18 Count Georg Anton of Hoyos9 Countess Marguerite Malvine of Hoyos19 Alice Whitehead2 Prince Ferdinand von Bismarck20 Captain Sven Justus Tengbom10 Ivar Justus Tengbom21 Agnes Carolina Almqvist5 Ann Mari Tengbom22 Lars August Nordin11 Hjordis Frederika Nordin23 Ida Josefina Hansson1 Count Gottfried von Bismarck24 Auguste Philippe Marie Lippens12 Raymond Lippens25 Marie Ghislaine t Serstevens6 Count Leon Lippens26 Baron Leon Marie de Bethune13 Baroness Ghislaine de Bethune27 Anne Jeanne David Fischbach Malacord3 Countess Elisabeth Lippens28 Hippolyte Philippe Marie Lippens14 Count Maurice Auguste Lippens29 Countess Louise de Kerchove de Denterghem7 Countess Suzanne Lippens30 Henri Edouard Auguste Peltzer15 Madeleine Peltzer31 Suzanne Amelie OrbanSee also editMona von Bismarck Carl Eduard von BismarckReferences edit a b Leo van de Pas Descendants of Herbord von Bismarck Worldroots Archived from the original on 6 July 2008 Retrieved 5 July 2007 Hein Bruin 4 July 2007 Descendants of Otto von Bismarck and Johanna von Puttkamer Heins Page Archived from the original on 11 January 2013 Retrieved 5 July 2007 a b c d Count Gottfried von Bismarck Obituary The Daily Telegraph 5 July 2007 Archived from the original on 15 May 2008 Retrieved 5 July 2007 a b c Stuart Wavell 27 August 2006 The Curse of the Count Sunday Times London Archived from the original on 12 April 2023 Retrieved 5 July 2007 Fred Attewill 6 October 2006 Fatal fall after gay orgy was misadventure The Guardian Archived from the original on 12 April 2023 Retrieved 5 July 2007 Cahal Milmo 11 October 2007 Bismarck died after injecting cocaine every hour for a day The Independent Archived from the original on 11 July 2012 Retrieved 12 October 2007 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Gottfried von Bismarck amp oldid 1175602120, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
