Henry Kissinger Net Worth: How Rich Political Scientist Henry Is?

By David Mudd On May 25, 2022

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Henry Kissinger Net Worth

Henry Kissinger is a prominent American diplomat and political scientist who has amassed a net worth of $50 million over the course of his career. In the beginning, Kissinger came to the United States as a political refugee to escape the anti-Jewish persecution that was occurring in Bavaria.

After serving in the military for some time, he finally naturalised as an American citizen and went on to become one of the most prominent politicians and advisors of the second half of the 20th century. He was one of the most outspoken voices in the execution of US foreign policy under Administrations Richard Nixon and Gerald Ford. He served in that capacity under both of those presidents.

Even though he was undeniably a force in US politics who had a significant influence and was at the forefront of innovation, many analysts and academics view him as a very contentious character. There are many who go so far as to call him a war criminal.

After Kissinger left public service, he established a worldwide geopolitical consulting company, which allowed him to continue to exert a significant influence on the politics of the world even after he had left government.

His company counts several of the world’s largest multinational businesses as some of its most renowned clients. Henry Kissinger was able to accomplish his goals, despite the fact that he is a divisive character. This much is beyond dispute.

Henry Kissinger Early Life

Heinz Alfred Kissinger was born on May 27th, 1923 in the city of Furth, which is located in the German state of Bavaria (in what was then the Weimar Republic of Germany). Heinz was one of two children raised by middle-class parents, and the other child was his brother. From a young age, Heinz developed an unhealthy preoccupation with soccer.

He improved his skills to the point that he was offered a position on the young squad of SpVgg Furth, which was at the time one of the most successful teams in Germany. Because of this, Kissinger developed a deep and abiding affection for the club throughout his whole life.

Heinz and his family left Germany and immigrated to the United States when he was 15 years old in order to escape the escalating antisemitism in Germany. The Nazis were responsible for the violent anti-Jewish demonstration known as Kristallnacht, which literally translates to “the night of the shattered glass.”

This event took place in Germany. After moving to New York City, Heinz changed his name to Henry, an Americanized version of the name, and enrolled in high school for a single year before beginning his career as a factory worker. He attended night classes throughout his senior year of high school, and then continued his studies at the college level, majoring in accounting.

Henry Kissinger Military Career

Although Kissinger had a bright academic future ahead of him, his postsecondary education was cut short when he was called up to serve in the United States Army during World War 2. At the age of 20, Henry became a naturalised citizen of the United States while he was still in the process of completing his army training.

Because of his quick wit and proficiency in German, he was transferred from the 84th Infantry Division to the Military Intelligence branch despite the fact that he had been posted there at first. Kissinger was nonetheless exposed to a significant amount of combat throughout his time as an intelligence officer and participated in the Battle of the Bulge.

Among his other accomplishments are the founding of the administration of an entire German city when he was still a private and the uncovering of a cell of Gestapo operatives working secretly. In the end, he was promoted to the position of Special Agent within the Counter Intelligence Corps and received the Bronze Star before leaving the service.

Henry Kissinger Academic Career

Following his discharge from the military, Henry Kissinger enrolled at Harvard University, where he received his Bachelor of Arts degree in political science in 1950. After that, he continued his education at Harvard, eventually receiving an MA as well as a Ph.D. in the year 1954.

After that, Henry remained at Harvard as a member of the faculty and established the Center for International Affairs there. He conducted research into nuclear weapons and international policy and argued that the United States should aggressively utilise nuclear weapons to win wars rather than depending on the “safety” of Mutually Assured Destruction (MAD).

Near the conclusion of his career as an academic, Henry Kissinger became involved in a number of presidential elections, initially serving as a foreign policy adviser to Nelson Rockefeller. Kissinger’s tenure as an academic came to an end in 1973.

Kissinger shifted his support and joined Nixon’s team when Nixon defeated Rockefeller for the Republican nomination. This was despite the fact that Kissinger had previously referred to Nixon as “the most hazardous of all persons to have as president” during the initial stages of the campaign.

Henry Kissinger Political Career

Henry Kissinger’s political career got off to a strong start in 1969 when President Nixon appointed him to the position of National Security Adviser. Both men forged a strong friendship with one another over the course of the subsequent several years as they worked to mould the globe through their own foreign policies.

When it came to the formation of U.S. foreign policy, Henry Kissinger was even more influential than the State Department. After Richard Nixon resigned as president in 1974 due to the Watergate scandal, Gerald Ford took over as president and ensured that Henry Kissinger remained in his old role as National Security Adviser.

Kissinger had a significant role in the formulation of policies of detente and was essential in the establishment of strong diplomatic ties with the Soviets. Additionally, he was instrumental in the establishment of a ceasefire in Vietnam, which allowed for the withdrawal of American soldiers; nevertheless, the ceasefire did not hold.

The establishment of a secret line of communication between Nixon and Mao Zedong in China was one of his first official acts after becoming office. However, diplomatic progress was difficult since China was keen on eradicating Taiwan, a nation that China saw as illegal and hence viewed as having no right to exist. In the end, Nixon made a deal with the Chinese that allowed him to advocate Taiwan’s expulsion from the United Nations. An anti-Soviet agreement was also forged between the United States of America and China.

Regarding the Vietnam conflict, Kissinger and Nixon had the same viewpoints and goals. Henry held the view that successes in Vietnam were fundamentally useless and had little long-term political influence, whereas Nixon won the election on the promise that he would bring an end to the conflict. In an effort to achieve “peace with honour” in Vietnam, several ideas were proposed; however, it appeared that none of them were successful.

The United States started making a gradual withdrawal of its forces, and Kissinger at one time even proposed using extreme force (such as nuclear bombing) to coerce the North Vietnamese into accepting a ceasefire. Despite the fact that this proposal was shot down, the government went on and attacked Cambodia without getting permission from Congress, which many people believed to be unlawful.

As Nixon’s frustrations grew, he began to advocate for progressively extreme actions, which finally led to the invasion of Cambodia by the United States. Kissinger ultimately brokered a ceasefire after spending years meeting in secrecy with a representative of the North Vietnamese government named Lê c Th. The United States of America’s South Vietnamese allies, on the other hand, refused to accept the deal because they saw it as a betrayal of their trust. In the end, South Vietnamese President Nguyn Văn Thiu was intimidated by Nixon into accepting the arrangement, and as a result, the United States withdrew its support for South Vietnam. Saigon had already fallen within a short amount of time, and Communist power had totally taken over Vietnam.

Even while the war in Vietnam was the primary focus of Kissinger’s political activity, he was also responsible for establishing foreign policy with reference to a number of other countries. He took a controversial stance and supported Pakistan during their conflict with Bangladesh. In addition, he was responsible for the military overthrow of a democratically elected government in Chile, which resulted in the installation of a president who was sympathetic toward the United States. These are only a few instances of the things he did when he was in office for the political party.

Henry Kissinger Personal Life

When Henry was younger, he had two marriages under his belt. From 1949 to 1964, he was married to Anne Fleischer. David and Elizabeth were their children. In 2005, David joined President of Conan O’Brien’s production firm Conaco after a lengthy career at NBC.

Henry married Nancy Maginnes in 1974. Al Maginnes, Nancy’s father, was a professional football player in the 1920s, then a successful attorney for more than three decades at Drye, New Maginnes & Warren.

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