Warren Christopher was born in Washington, D.C., in 1932. He attended the University of Maryland, where he played football on the varsity team. Following graduation, he was commissioned as an officer in the United States Air Force. He then went to Oxford University on the Rhodes Scholarship, where he earned an M.A
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degree in international law and diplomacy. He joined the Department of Justice in 1965 and became chief of staff under Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy three years later.
In January 1971, President Richard M. Nixon appointed him as his secretary of state, making him the first African American to serve as secretary of state and one of America's highest ranking African Americans to date. He served until January 1977 when he was appointed chairman of the Democratic Leadership Council, a position he held until 1984.
From 1977 to 1986 he was a partner at Covington & Burling LLP and was president and CEO from 1984 to 1986. In 1986 Mr. Christopher founded Christopher & Associates, Inc., a strategic advisory services company based in Washington, D.C., which specialized in public policy and crisis management for two decades before turning its focus toward international development and private equity investments in early 2001.
Mr. Christopher died on March 8, 2008 at his home in Washington, D.C., due to complications from pneumonia and recent surgery for pancreatic cancer, which had metastasized to his liver and bones.
