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Christopher Eric Hitchens (13 April 1949 – 15 December 2011) was a British and American author and journalist. He was the author of 18 books on faith,
religion Religion is a range of social system, social-cultural systems, including designated religious behaviour, behaviors and practices, morals, beliefs, worldviews, religious text, texts, sanctified places, prophecies, ethics in religion, ethics, or ...
, culture, politics, and literature. He was born and educated in Britain, graduating in 1970 from the
University of Oxford The University of Oxford is a collegiate university, collegiate research university in Oxford, England. There is evidence of teaching as early as 1096, making it the oldest university in the English-speaking world and the List of oldest un ...
with a degree in
philosophy, politics, and economics Philosophy, politics and economics, or politics, philosophy and economics (PPE), is an interdisciplinary undergraduate or postgraduate degree which combines study from three disciplines. The first institution to offer degrees in PPE was the Unive ...
. In the early 1980s, he emigrated to the United States and wrote for ''
The Nation ''The Nation'' is a progressive American monthly magazine that covers political and cultural news, opinion, and analysis. It was founded on July 6, 1865, as a successor to William Lloyd Garrison's '' The Liberator'', an abolitionist newspaper ...
'' and '' Vanity Fair''. Known as one of the " Four Horsemen" of
New Atheism New Atheism is a perspective shared by some atheist academics, writers, scientists, and philosophers of the 20th and 21st centuries, intolerant of superstition, religion, and irrationalism. New Atheists advocate the antitheist view that the v ...
(along with
Richard Dawkins Richard Dawkins (born 26 March 1941) is a British evolutionary biology, evolutionary biologist, zoologist, science communicator and author. He is an Oxford fellow, emeritus fellow of New College, Oxford, and was Simonyi Professor for the Publ ...
,
Sam Harris Samuel Benjamin Harris (born April 9, 1967) is an American philosopher, neuroscientist, author, and podcast host. His work touches on a range of topics, including rationality, religion, ethics, free will, determinism, neuroscience, meditation ...
, and
Daniel Dennett Daniel Clement Dennett III (March 28, 1942 – April 19, 2024) was an American philosopher and cognitive scientist. His research centered on the philosophy of mind, the philosophy of science, and the philosophy of biology, particularly as those ...
), he gained prominence as a columnist and speaker. His epistemological razor, which states that "what can be asserted without evidence can also be dismissed without evidence", is still of mark in philosophy and law. Hitchens's political views evolved greatly throughout his life. Originally describing himself as a
democratic socialist Democratic socialism is a left-wing economic and political philosophy that supports political democracy and some form of a socially owned economy, with a particular emphasis on economic democracy, workplace democracy, and workers' self-mana ...
, he was a member of various socialist organisations in his early life, including the
Trotskyist Trotskyism (, ) is the political ideology and branch of Marxism developed by Russian revolutionary and intellectual Leon Trotsky along with some other members of the Left Opposition and the Fourth International. Trotsky described himself as an ...
International Socialists. Hitchens was critical of aspects of American foreign policy, including its involvement in
Vietnam Vietnam, officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam (SRV), is a country at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of about and a population of over 100 million, making it the world's List of countries and depende ...
,
Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in western South America. It is the southernmost country in the world and the closest to Antarctica, stretching along a narrow strip of land between the Andes, Andes Mountains and the Paci ...
, and
East Timor Timor-Leste, also known as East Timor, officially the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste, is a country in Southeast Asia. It comprises the eastern half of the island of Timor, the coastal exclave of Oecusse in the island's northwest, and ...
. However, he also supported the United States in the
Kosovo War The Kosovo War (; sr-Cyrl-Latn, Косовски рат, Kosovski rat) was an armed conflict in Kosovo that lasted from 28 February 1998 until 11 June 1999. It ...
. Hitchens emphasised the centrality of the
American Revolution The American Revolution (1765–1783) was a colonial rebellion and war of independence in which the Thirteen Colonies broke from British America, British rule to form the United States of America. The revolution culminated in the American ...
and
Constitution A constitution is the aggregate of fundamental principles or established precedents that constitute the legal basis of a polity, organization or other type of entity, and commonly determines how that entity is to be governed. When these pri ...
to his political philosophy. He held complex views on abortion: being ethically opposed to it in most instances, and believing that a
foetus A fetus or foetus (; : fetuses, foetuses, rarely feti or foeti) is the unborn offspring of a viviparous animal that develops from an embryo. Following the embryonic stage, the fetal stage of development takes place. Prenatal development is a ...
was entitled to
personhood Personhood is the status of being a person. Defining personhood is a controversial topic in philosophy and law and is closely tied with legal and political concepts of citizenship, equality, and liberty. According to law, only a legal person (ei ...
; while holding ambiguous, changing views on its legality. He supported
gun rights The right to keep and bear arms (often referred to as the right to bear arms) is a legal right for people to possess weapons (arms) for the preservation of life, liberty, and property. The purpose of gun rights is for self-defense, as well as ...
and supported
same-sex marriage Same-sex marriage, also known as gay marriage, is the marriage of two people of the same legal Legal sex and gender, sex. marriage between same-sex couples is legally performed and recognized in 38 countries, with a total population of 1.5 ...
, while opposing the war on drugs. Beginning in the 1990s, and particularly after
9/11 The September 11 attacks, also known as 9/11, were four coordinated Islamist terrorist suicide attacks by al-Qaeda against the United States in 2001. Nineteen terrorists hijacked four commercial airliners, crashing the first two into ...
, his politics were widely viewed as drifting to
the right Right-wing politics is the range of Ideology#Political ideologies, political ideologies that view certain social orders and Social stratification, hierarchies as inevitable, natural, normal, or desirable, typically supporting this position b ...
, but Hitchens objected to being called 'conservative'. During the 2000s, he argued for the invasions of Iraq and
Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. It is bordered by Pakistan to the Durand Line, east and south, Iran to the Afghanistan–Iran borde ...
, endorsed the re-election campaign of
US President The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president directs the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed For ...
George W. Bush George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician and businessman who was the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Bush family and the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he i ...
in
2004 2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and Its Abolition (by UNESCO). Events January * January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 60 ...
, and viewed
Islamism Islamism is a range of religious and political ideological movements that believe that Islam should influence political systems. Its proponents believe Islam is innately political, and that Islam as a political system is superior to communism ...
as the principal threat to the
Western world The Western world, also known as the West, primarily refers to various nations and state (polity), states in Western Europe, Northern America, and Australasia; with some debate as to whether those in Eastern Europe and Latin America also const ...
. Hitchens described himself as an antitheist and saw all religions as false, harmful, and
authoritarian Authoritarianism is a political system characterized by the rejection of political plurality, the use of strong central power to preserve the political ''status quo'', and reductions in democracy, separation of powers, civil liberties, and ...
. He endorsed
free expression Freedom of speech is a principle that supports the freedom of an individual or a community to articulate their opinions and ideas without fear of retaliation, censorship, or legal sanction. The right to freedom of expression has been recognise ...
,
scientific scepticism Scientific skepticism or rational skepticism (also spelled scepticism), sometimes referred to as skeptical inquiry, is a position in which one questions the veracity of claims lacking scientific evidence. In practice, the term most commonly ref ...
, and
separation of church and state The separation of church and state is a philosophical and Jurisprudence, jurisprudential concept for defining political distance in the relationship between religious organizations and the State (polity), state. Conceptually, the term refers to ...
, arguing
science Science is a systematic discipline that builds and organises knowledge in the form of testable hypotheses and predictions about the universe. Modern science is typically divided into twoor threemajor branches: the natural sciences, which stu ...
and
philosophy Philosophy ('love of wisdom' in Ancient Greek) is a systematic study of general and fundamental questions concerning topics like existence, reason, knowledge, Value (ethics and social sciences), value, mind, and language. It is a rational an ...
are superior to
religion Religion is a range of social system, social-cultural systems, including designated religious behaviour, behaviors and practices, morals, beliefs, worldviews, religious text, texts, sanctified places, prophecies, ethics in religion, ethics, or ...
as an ethical code of conduct for human civilisation. Hitchens notably wrote critical biographies of Catholic nun
Mother Teresa Mary Teresa Bojaxhiu (born Anjezë Gonxhe Bojaxhiu, ; 26 August 1910 – 5 September 1997), better known as Mother Teresa or Saint Mother Teresa, was an Albanian-Indian Catholic Church, Roman Catholic nun, founder of the Missionaries of ...
in ''The Missionary Position'',
Bill Clinton William Jefferson Clinton (né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician and lawyer who was the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, ...
in '' No One Left to Lie To'', and American diplomat
Henry Kissinger Henry Alfred Kissinger (May 27, 1923 – November 29, 2023) was an American diplomat and political scientist who served as the 56th United States secretary of state from 1973 to 1977 and the 7th National Security Advisor (United States), natio ...
in ''
The Trial of Henry Kissinger ''The Trial of Henry Kissinger'' is a 2001 book by Christopher Hitchens which examines the alleged war crimes of Henry Kissinger, the National Security Advisor and later, the U.S. Secretary of State for Presidents Richard Nixon and Gerald Ford. ...
''. Hitchens died from complications related to
oesophageal cancer Esophageal cancer (American English) or oesophageal cancer (British English) is cancer arising from the esophagus—the food pipe that runs between the throat and the stomach. Symptoms often include difficulty in swallowing and weight loss. Ot ...
in December 2011, at the age of 62.


Early life and education

Hitchens was born in
Portsmouth Portsmouth ( ) is a port city status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Hampshire, England. Most of Portsmouth is located on Portsea Island, off the south coast of England in the Solent, making Portsmouth the only city in En ...
,
Hampshire Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Berkshire to the north, Surrey and West Sussex to the east, the Isle of Wight across the Solent to the south, ...
, the elder of two boys; his brother,
Peter Peter may refer to: People * List of people named Peter, a list of people and fictional characters with the given name * Peter (given name) ** Saint Peter (died 60s), apostle of Jesus, leader of the early Christian Church * Peter (surname), a su ...
, became a
socially conservative Social conservatism is a political philosophy and a variety of conservatism which places emphasis on traditional social structures over social pluralism. Social conservatives organize in favor of duty, traditional values and social institu ...
journalist. Their parents, Commander Eric Ernest Hitchens (1909–1987) and Yvonne Jean Hitchens (née Hickman; 1921–1973), met in Scotland when serving in the
Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the naval warfare force of the United Kingdom. It is a component of His Majesty's Naval Service, and its officers hold their commissions from the King of the United Kingdom, King. Although warships were used by Kingdom ...
during
World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
. His mother had been a Wren, a member of the
Women's Royal Naval Service The Women's Royal Naval Service (WRNS; popularly and officially known as the Wrens) was the women's branch of the United Kingdom's Royal Navy. First formed in 1917 for the World War I, First World War, it was disbanded in 1919, then revived in ...
. She was of
Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...
origin, something that Hitchens discovered when he was 38; he thus came to identify as a Jew. Hitchens often referred to his father simply as 'the Commander'. Eric Hitchens was deployed on , which took part in the sinking of the in the
Battle of the North Cape The Battle of the North Cape was a Second World War naval battle that occurred on 26 December 1943, as part of the Arctic campaign. The , on an operation to attack Arctic convoys of war materiel from the western Allies to the Soviet Union, ...
on 26 December 1943. He paid tribute to his father's contribution to the war: "Sending a Nazi convoy-raider to the bottom is a better day's work than any I have ever done." Eric's naval career required the family to move from base to base throughout Britain and its colonies; including to
Malta Malta, officially the Republic of Malta, is an island country in Southern Europe located in the Mediterranean Sea, between Sicily and North Africa. It consists of an archipelago south of Italy, east of Tunisia, and north of Libya. The two ...
, where Peter Hitchens was born in
Sliema Sliema ( ) is a town located on the northeast coast of Malta in the Districts of Malta#Northern Harbour District, Northern Harbour District. It is a major residential and commercial area and a centre for shopping, bars, dining, and café life. ...
in 1951. Eric later worked as a bookkeeper for boatbuilders, speedboat manufacturers, and a prep school. Hitchens attended two private schools— Mount House School,
Tavistock Tavistock ( ) is an ancient stannary and market town and civil parish in the West Devon district, in the county of Devon, England. It is situated on the River Tavy, from which its name derives. At the 2011 census, the three electoral wards (N ...
, Devon, from the age of eight, and the
Leys School The Leys School is a co-educational private school in Cambridge, England. It is a boarding and day school for about 565 pupils between the ages of eleven and eighteen. The head is a member of the Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference. ...
in
Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a List of cities in the United Kingdom, city and non-metropolitan district in the county of Cambridgeshire, England. It is the county town of Cambridgeshire and is located on the River Cam, north of London. As of the 2021 Unit ...
. Hitchens went up to
Balliol College, Oxford Balliol College () is a constituent college of the University of Oxford. Founded in 1263 by nobleman John I de Balliol, it has a claim to be the oldest college in Oxford and the English-speaking world. With a governing body of a master and aro ...
, in 1967 where he read
philosophy, politics and economics Philosophy, politics and economics, or politics, philosophy and economics (PPE), is an interdisciplinary undergraduate or postgraduate academic degree, degree which combines study from three disciplines. The first institution to offer degrees in P ...
and was tutored by
Steven Lukes Steven Michael Lukes (born 8 March 1941) is a British political and social theorist. Currently he is a professor of politics and sociology at New York University. He was formerly a professor at the University of Siena, the European University ...
and
Anthony Kenny Sir Anthony John Patrick Kenny (born 16 March 1931) is a British philosopher whose interests lie in the philosophy of mind, ancient and scholastic philosophy, the philosophy of religion, and the philosophy of Wittgenstein of whose literary est ...
. He graduated in 1970 with a
third-class degree The British undergraduate degree classification system is a grading structure used for undergraduate degrees or bachelor's degrees and integrated master's degrees in the United Kingdom. The system has been applied, sometimes with significant va ...
. In his adolescence, he was "bowled over" by
Richard Llewellyn Richard Dafydd Vivian Llewellyn Lloyd (; 8 December 1906, London – 30 November 1983, Dublin), known by his pen name Richard Llewellyn ( , ), was a British novelist of a Welsh background, who is best remembered for his 1939 novel '' How G ...
's ''
How Green Was My Valley ''How Green Was My Valley'' is a 1939 novel by Richard Llewellyn, narrated by Huw Morgan, the main character, about his Welsh family and the mining community in which they live. The author had claimed that he based the book on his own experi ...
'',
Arthur Koestler Arthur Koestler (, ; ; ; 5 September 1905 – 1 March 1983) was an Austria-Hungary, Austro-Hungarian-born author and journalist. Koestler was born in Budapest, and was educated in Austria, apart from his early school years. In 1931, Koestler j ...
's ''
Darkness at Noon ''Darkness at Noon'' (, ) is a novel by Austrian-Hungarian-born novelist Arthur Koestler, first published in 1940. His best known work, it is the tale of Rubashov, an Old Bolshevik who is arrested, imprisoned, and tried for treason against the ...
,''
Fyodor Dostoyevsky Fyodor Mikhailovich Dostoevsky. () was a Russian novelist, short story writer, essayist and journalist. He is regarded as one of the greatest novelists in both Russian literature, Russian and world literature, and many of his works are consider ...
's ''
Crime and Punishment ''Crime and Punishment'' is a novel by the Russian author Fyodor Dostoevsky. It was first published in the literary journal '' The Russian Messenger'' in twelve monthly installments during 1866.
'', R. H. Tawney's critique on ''Religion and the Rise of Capitalism'', and the works of
George Orwell Eric Arthur Blair (25 June 1903 – 21 January 1950) was an English novelist, poet, essayist, journalist, and critic who wrote under the pen name of George Orwell. His work is characterised by lucid prose, social criticism, opposition to a ...
. In 1968, he took part in the TV quiz-show ''
University Challenge ''University Challenge'' is a British television quiz programme which first aired in 1962. ''University Challenge'' aired for 913 episodes on ITV from 21 September 1962 to 31 December 1987, presented by quizmaster Bamber Gascoigne. The BBC ...
''. In the 1960s, Hitchens joined the political left; drawn by disagreement over the
Vietnam War The Vietnam War (1 November 1955 – 30 April 1975) was an armed conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia fought between North Vietnam (Democratic Republic of Vietnam) and South Vietnam (Republic of Vietnam) and their allies. North Vietnam w ...
, nuclear weapons, racism, and oligarchy, including that of "the unaccountable corporation". He expressed affinity with the politically charged counter-cultural and protest movements of the 1960s and 1970s. He avoided the recreational drug-use of the time, saying "in my cohort we were slightly anti-hedonistic ... it made it very much easier for police provocation to occur, because the planting of drugs was something that happened to almost everyone one knew." Hitchens was inspired to become a journalist after reading a piece by
James Cameron James Francis Cameron (born August 16, 1954) is a Canadian filmmaker, who resides in New Zealand. He is a major figure in the post-New Hollywood era and often uses novel technologies with a Classical Hollywood cinema, classical filmmaking styl ...
. Hitchens was
bisexual Bisexuality is romantic attraction, sexual attraction, or sexual behavior toward both males and females. It may also be defined as the attraction to more than one gender, to people of both the same and different gender, or the attraction t ...
during his younger days; and joked that as he aged, his appearance "declined to the point where only women would go to bed with im. He said he had sexual relations with two male students at Oxford who would later become government ministers during the
premiership of Margaret Thatcher Margaret Thatcher's tenure as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom began on 4 May 1979 when she accepted an invitation from Queen Elizabeth II to form a government, succeeding James Callaghan of the Labour Party (UK), Labour Party, and ended ...
, although he would not reveal their names publicly. Hitchens joined the Labour Party in 1965, but along with the majority of the Labour students' organisation was expelled in 1967, because of what Hitchens called "Prime Minister
Harold Wilson James Harold Wilson, Baron Wilson of Rievaulx (11 March 1916 – 23 May 1995) was a British statesman and Labour Party (UK), Labour Party politician who twice served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, from 1964 to 1970 and again from 197 ...
's contemptible support for the war in Vietnam". Under the influence of
Peter Sedgwick Peter Harold Sedgwick (9 March 1934 – c. 8 September 1983) was a translator of Victor Serge, author of a number of books including ''PsychoPolitics'' and a revolutionary socialist activist. Life Peter Sedgwick grew up in Liverpool and won a sc ...
, who translated the writings of the Russian revolutionary and Soviet dissident
Victor Serge Victor Serge (; born Viktor Lvovich Kibalchich, ; 30 December 1890 – 17 November 1947) was a Belgian-born Russian revolutionary, novelist, poet, historian, journalist, and translator. Originally an anarchist, he joined the Bolsheviks in Janu ...
, Hitchens forged an ideological interest in
Trotskyism Trotskyism (, ) is the political ideology and branch of Marxism developed by Russian revolutionary and intellectual Leon Trotsky along with some other members of the Left Opposition and the Fourth International. Trotsky described himself as an ...
and
anti-Stalinist The anti-Stalinist left encompasses various kinds of left-wing political movements that oppose Joseph Stalin, Stalinism, neo-Stalinism and the system of governance that Stalin implemented as leader of the Soviet Union between 1924 and 1953. This ...
socialism. Shortly after, he joined "a small but growing post-Trotskyist Luxemburgist sect", the International Socialists. Hitchens recruited
James Fenton James Martin Fenton (born 25 April 1949) is an English poet, journalist and literary critic. He is a former Oxford Professor of Poetry. Life and career Born in Lincoln, Fenton grew up in Lincolnshire and Staffordshire, the son of Canon Jo ...
to the International Socialists.


Career


Journalistic career in the UK (1971–1981)

Early in his career Hitchens began working as a correspondent for the magazine ''
International Socialism ''International Socialism'' is a British-based quarterly journal established in 1960 and published in London by the Socialist Workers Party which discusses socialist theory. It is currently edited by Joseph Choonara who replaced Alex Callini ...
'', published by the International Socialists, the forerunners of today's British Socialist Workers Party. This group was broadly Trotskyist, but differed from more orthodox Trotskyist groups in its refusal to defend communist states as "workers' states". Their slogan was "Neither Washington nor Moscow but International Socialism". In 1971 after spending a year travelling the United States on a scholarship, Hitchens went to work at the ''
Times Higher Education Supplement ''Times Higher Education'' (''THE''), formerly ''The Times Higher Education Supplement'' (''The THES''), is a British magazine reporting specifically on news and issues related to higher education. Ownership TPG Capital acquired TSL Education ...
'' where he served as a social science correspondent. Hitchens was fired after six months in the job. Next he was a researcher for ITV's ''
Weekend World ''Weekend World'' is a British television political series, made by London Weekend Television (LWT) and broadcast from 1972 to 1988. Created by John Birt, not long after he had joined LWT, the series was broadcast on the ITV network at midday ...
''. In 1973 Hitchens went to work for the ''
New Statesman ''The New Statesman'' (known from 1931 to 1964 as the ''New Statesman and Nation'') is a British political and cultural news magazine published in London. Founded as a weekly review of politics and literature on 12 April 1913, it was at first c ...
'', where his colleagues included the authors
Martin Amis Sir Martin Louis Amis (25 August 1949 – 19 May 2023) was an English novelist, essayist, memoirist, screenwriter and critic. He is best known for his novels ''Money'' (1984) and '' London Fields'' (1989). He received the James Tait Black Mem ...
, whom he had briefly met at Oxford, as well as
Julian Barnes Julian Patrick Barnes (born 19 January 1946) is an English writer. He won the Man Booker Prize in 2011 with ''The Sense of an Ending'', having been shortlisted three times previously with ''Flaubert's Parrot'', ''England, England'', and ''Arthu ...
and
James Fenton James Martin Fenton (born 25 April 1949) is an English poet, journalist and literary critic. He is a former Oxford Professor of Poetry. Life and career Born in Lincoln, Fenton grew up in Lincolnshire and Staffordshire, the son of Canon Jo ...
, with whom he had shared a house in Oxford. Amis described him at the time as, "handsome, festive ndgauntly left-wing". Around that time, the Friday lunches began, which were attended by writers including
Clive James Clive James (born Vivian Leopold James; 7 October 1939 – 24 November 2019) was an Australian critic, journalist, broadcaster, writer and lyricist who lived and worked in the United Kingdom from 1962 until his death in 2019.Ian McEwan Ian Russell McEwan (born 21 June 1948) is a British novelist and screenwriter. In 2008, ''The Times'' featured him on its list of "The 50 greatest British writers since 1945" and ''The Daily Telegraph'' ranked him number 19 in its list of the ...
,
Kingsley Amis Sir Kingsley William Amis (16 April 1922 – 22 October 1995) was an English novelist, poet, critic and teacher. He wrote more than 20 novels, six volumes of poetry, a memoir, short stories, radio and television scripts, and works of social crit ...
,
Terence Kilmartin Terence Kevin Kilmartin CBE (10 January 1922 – 17 August 1991) was an Irish-born translator who served as the literary editor of ''The Observer'' between 1952 and 1986. He is best known for his 1981 revision of the Scott Moncrieff translati ...
,
Robert Conquest George Robert Acworth Conquest (15 July 19173 August 2015) was a British and American historian, poet, novelist, and propagandist. He was briefly a member of the Communist Party of Great Britain but later wrote several books condemning commun ...
,
Al Alvarez Alfred Alvarez (5 August 1929 – 23 September 2019) was an English poet, novelist, essayist and critic who published under the name A. Alvarez and Al Alvarez. Background Alfred Alvarez was born in London, to an Ashkenazic Jewish mother and a ...
, Peter Porter,
Russell Davies Robert Russell Davies (born 5 April 1946) is a British journalist and broadcaster. Davies was born in Barmouth, North Wales. He attended Manchester Grammar School, according to his own statement on a November 2010 '' Brain of Britain'' programm ...
, and
Mark Boxer Charles Mark Edward Boxer (19 May 1931 – 20 July 1988) was a British magazine editor and social observer, and a political cartoonist and graphic portrait artist working under the pen-name ‘Marc’. Education Boxer was educated at Berkhamst ...
. At the ''New Statesman'' Hitchens acquired a reputation as a left-winger while working as a
war correspondent A war correspondent is a journalist who covers stories first-hand from a war, war zone. War correspondence stands as one of journalism's most important and impactful forms. War correspondents operate in the most conflict-ridden parts of the wor ...
from areas of conflict such as Northern Ireland, Libya, and Iraq. In November 1973, while in Greece, Hitchens reported on the constitutional crisis of the
military junta A military junta () is a system of government led by a committee of military leaders. The term ''Junta (governing body), junta'' means "meeting" or "committee" and originated in the Junta (Peninsular War), national and local junta organized by t ...
. It became his first leading article for the ''New Statesman''. In December 1977 Hitchens interviewed Argentine dictator
Jorge Rafael Videla Jorge Rafael Videla ( ; ; 2 August 1925 – 17 May 2013) was an Argentine military officer and the ''de facto'' President of Argentina from 1976 to 1981, during the National Reorganization Process. His rule, which was during the time of Operati ...
, a conversation he later described as "horrifying". In 1977, unhappy at the ''New Statesman'', Hitchens moved to the ''
Daily Express The ''Daily Express'' is a national daily United Kingdom middle-market newspaper printed in Tabloid (newspaper format), tabloid format. Published in London, it is the flagship of Express Newspapers, owned by publisher Reach plc. It was first ...
'', where he became a foreign correspondent. He returned to the ''New Statesman'' in 1978 where he became assistant editor and then foreign editor.


American writings (1981–2011)

Hitchens went to the United States in 1981 as part of an editor exchange programme between the ''
New Statesman ''The New Statesman'' (known from 1931 to 1964 as the ''New Statesman and Nation'') is a British political and cultural news magazine published in London. Founded as a weekly review of politics and literature on 12 April 1913, it was at first c ...
'' and ''
The Nation ''The Nation'' is a progressive American monthly magazine that covers political and cultural news, opinion, and analysis. It was founded on July 6, 1865, as a successor to William Lloyd Garrison's '' The Liberator'', an abolitionist newspaper ...
''. After joining ''The Nation'', he penned vociferous critiques of
Ronald Reagan Ronald Wilson Reagan (February 6, 1911 – June 5, 2004) was an American politician and actor who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. He was a member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party a ...
,
George H. W. Bush George Herbert Walker BushBefore the outcome of the 2000 United States presidential election, he was usually referred to simply as "George Bush" but became more commonly known as "George H. W. Bush", "Bush Senior," "Bush 41," and even "Bush th ...
and American foreign policy in South and Central America. Hitchens became a contributing editor of '' Vanity Fair'' in 1992, writing ten columns a year. He left ''The Nation'' in 2002 after profoundly disagreeing with other contributors over the Iraq War. There is speculation that Hitchens was the inspiration for
Tom Wolfe Thomas Kennerly Wolfe Jr. (March 2, 1930 – May 14, 2018)Some sources say 1931; ''The New York Times'' and Reuters both initially reported 1931 in their obituaries before changing to 1930. See and was an American author and journalist widely ...
's character Peter Fallow in the 1987 novel ''
The Bonfire of the Vanities ''The Bonfire of the Vanities'' is a 1987 novel by Tom Wolfe. The story is a drama about ambition, racism, social class, politics, and greed in 1980s New York City, and centers on three main characters: WASP bond trader Sherman McCoy, Jewish a ...
'', but others—including Hitchens—believe it to be ''
Spy Magazine ''Spy'' was a satirical monthly magazine published from 1986 to 1998. Based in New York City, the magazine was founded by Kurt Andersen and E. Graydon Carter, who served as its first editors, and Thomas L. Phillips Jr., its first publisher. ' ...
''s "Ironman Nightlife Decathlete",
Anthony Haden-Guest Anthony Haden-Guest (born 2 February 1937) is an English-American writer, reporter, cartoonist, art critic, poet, and socialite who lives in New York City and London. He is a frequent contributor to major magazines and has had several books pu ...
. In 1987, Hitchens's father died of cancer of the oesophagus, the same disease that would later claim his own life. In April 2007, Hitchens became a US citizen; he later stated that he saw himself as ''Anglo-American''. He became a media fellow at the
Hoover Institution The Hoover Institution (officially The Hoover Institution on War, Revolution, and Peace and formerly The Hoover Institute and Library on War, Revolution, and Peace) is an American public policy think tank which promotes personal and economic ...
in September 2008. At ''
Slate Slate is a fine-grained, foliated, homogeneous, metamorphic rock derived from an original shale-type sedimentary rock composed of clay or volcanic ash through low-grade, regional metamorphism. It is the finest-grained foliated metamorphic ro ...
'', he usually wrote under the news-and-politics column ''Fighting Words''. Hitchens spent part of his early career in journalism as a foreign correspondent in
Cyprus Cyprus (), officially the Republic of Cyprus, is an island country in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Situated in West Asia, its cultural identity and geopolitical orientation are overwhelmingly Southeast European. Cyprus is the List of isl ...
. Through his work there he met his first wife, Eleni Meleagrou, a
Greek Cypriot Greek Cypriots (, ) are the ethnic Greek population of Cyprus, forming the island's largest ethnolinguistic community. According to the 2023 census, 719,252 respondents recorded their ethnicity as Greek, forming almost 99% of the 737,196 Cypri ...
, with whom he had two children, Alexander and Sophia. His son, Alexander Meleagrou-Hitchens, born in 1984, has worked as a policy researcher in London. Hitchens continued writing essay-style correspondence pieces from a variety of locales, including
Chad Chad, officially the Republic of Chad, is a landlocked country at the crossroads of North Africa, North and Central Africa. It is bordered by Libya to Chad–Libya border, the north, Sudan to Chad–Sudan border, the east, the Central Afric ...
, Uganda and the
Darfur Darfur ( ; ) is a region of western Sudan. ''Dār'' is an Arabic word meaning "home f – the region was named Dardaju () while ruled by the Daju, who migrated from Meroë , and it was renamed Dartunjur () when the Tunjur ruled the area. ...
region of
Sudan Sudan, officially the Republic of the Sudan, is a country in Northeast Africa. It borders the Central African Republic to the southwest, Chad to the west, Libya to the northwest, Egypt to the north, the Red Sea to the east, Eritrea and Ethiopi ...
. In 1991, he received a Lannan Literary Award for Nonfiction. Hitchens met Carol Blue in Los Angeles in 1989 and they married in 1991. Hitchens called it love at first sight. In 1999, Hitchens and Blue, both harsh critics of
Bill Clinton William Jefferson Clinton (né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician and lawyer who was the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, ...
, submitted an affidavit to the trial managers of the Republican Party in the
impeachment of Clinton Bill Clinton, the 42nd president of the United States, was impeached by the United States House of Representatives of the 105th United States Congress on December 19, 1998. The House adopted two articles of impeachment against Clinton, with ...
. Therein they swore that their then-friend
Sidney Blumenthal Sidney Stone Blumenthal (born November 6, 1948) is an American journalist, political operative, and Abraham Lincoln scholar. A former aide to Bill Clinton, he is a long-time confidant of Hillary Clinton, and was formerly employed by the Clinton ...
had described
Monica Lewinsky Monica Samille Lewinsky (born July 23, 1973) is an American activist. Lewinsky became internationally known in the late 1990s after U.S. President Bill Clinton admitted to having had an affair with her during her days as a White House intern ...
as a stalker. This allegation contradicted Blumenthal's own sworn deposition in the trial, and it resulted in a hostile exchange of opinion in the public sphere between Hitchens and Blumenthal. Following the publication of Blumenthal's ''The Clinton Wars,'' Hitchens wrote several pieces in which he accused Blumenthal of manipulating the facts. The incident ended their friendship and sparked a personal crisis for Hitchens, who was stridently criticised by friends for what they saw as a cynical and ultimately politically futile act. Before Hitchens's political shift, the American author and polemicist
Gore Vidal Eugene Luther Gore Vidal ( ; born Eugene Louis Vidal, October 3, 1925 – July 31, 2012) was an American writer and public intellectual known for his acerbic epigrammatic wit. His novels and essays interrogated the Social norm, social and sexual ...
spoke of Hitchens as his " dauphin" or "heir". In 2010 Hitchens attacked Vidal in a ''Vanity Fair'' piece headlined "Vidal Loco", calling him a "crackpot" for his adoption of
9/11 conspiracy theories There are various Conspiracy theory, conspiracy theories that attribute the preparation and execution of the September 11 attacks against the United States to parties other than, or in addition to, al-Qaeda. These include the theory that high ...
. On the back of Hitchens's memoir ''Hitch-22,'' among the praise from notable figures, Vidal's endorsement of Hitchens as his successor is crossed out in red and annotated "NO, C.H." Hitchens's strong advocacy of the war in Iraq gained him a wider readership, and in September 2005 he was named as fifth on the list of the "Top 100 Public Intellectuals" by ''
Foreign Policy Foreign policy, also known as external policy, is the set of strategies and actions a State (polity), state employs in its interactions with other states, unions, and international entities. It encompasses a wide range of objectives, includ ...
'' and ''
Prospect Prospect may refer to: General * Prospect (marketing), a marketing term describing a potential customer * Prospect (sports), any player whose rights are owned by a professional team, but who has yet to play a game for the team * Prospect (minin ...
'' magazines. An online poll ranked the 100 intellectuals, but the magazines noted that the rankings of Hitchens (5),
Noam Chomsky Avram Noam Chomsky (born December 7, 1928) is an American professor and public intellectual known for his work in linguistics, political activism, and social criticism. Sometimes called "the father of modern linguistics", Chomsky is also a ...
(1), and
Abdolkarim Soroush Abdolkarim Soroush ( ), born Hossein Haj Faraj Dabbagh (born 16 December 1945; ), is an Iranian Islamic and Rumi scholar, and a former professor of philosophy at the University of Tehran. He is among the most influential figures in the religio ...
(15) were partly due to their respective supporters' publicising of the vote. Hitchens later responded to his ranking with a few articles about his status as such. Hitchens did not leave his position writing for ''The Nation'' until after the
September 11 attacks The September 11 attacks, also known as 9/11, were four coordinated Islamist terrorist suicide attacks by al-Qaeda against the United States in 2001. Nineteen terrorists hijacked four commercial airliners, crashing the first two into ...
, stating that he felt the magazine had arrived at a position "that
John Ashcroft John David Ashcroft (born May 9, 1942) is an American lawyer, Lobbying, lobbyist, and former politician who served as the 79th United States attorney general under President George W. Bush from 2001 to 2005. A Republican Party (United States), R ...
is a greater menace than
Osama bin Laden Osama bin Laden (10 March 19572 May 2011) was a militant leader who was the founder and first general emir of al-Qaeda. Ideologically a pan-Islamist, Bin Laden participated in the Afghan ''mujahideen'' against the Soviet Union, and support ...
". The September 11 attacks "exhilarated" him, bringing into focus "a battle between everything I love and everything I hate" and strengthening his embrace of an interventionist foreign policy that challenged " fascism with an Islamic face". His numerous editorials in support of the
Iraq War The Iraq War (), also referred to as the Second Gulf War, was a prolonged conflict in Iraq lasting from 2003 to 2011. It began with 2003 invasion of Iraq, the invasion by a Multi-National Force – Iraq, United States-led coalition, which ...
caused some to label him a
neoconservative Neoconservatism (colloquially neocon) is a political movement which began in the United States during the 1960s among liberal hawks who became disenchanted with the increasingly pacifist Democratic Party along with the growing New Left and ...
, although Hitchens insisted he was not "a conservative of any kind", and his friend
Ian McEwan Ian Russell McEwan (born 21 June 1948) is a British novelist and screenwriter. In 2008, ''The Times'' featured him on its list of "The 50 greatest British writers since 1945" and ''The Daily Telegraph'' ranked him number 19 in its list of the ...
described him as representing the anti-totalitarian left. Hitchens recalls in his memoir having been "invited by
Bernard-Henri Lévy Bernard-Henri Georges Lévy (; ; born 5 November 1948) is a French public intellectual. Often referred to in France simply as BHL, he was one of the leaders of the " Nouveaux Philosophes" (New Philosophers) movement in 1976. His opinions, politi ...
to write an essay on political reconsiderations for his magazine '. I gave it the partly ironic title: 'Can One Be a Neoconservative?' Impatient with this, some copy editor put it on the cover as 'How I Became a Neoconservative.' Perhaps this was an instance of the Cartesian principle as opposed to the English empiricist one: It was decided that I evidently was what I apparently only thought." Indeed, in a 2010 BBC interview, he stated that he "still houghtlike a Marxist" and considered himself "a leftist". In 2007, Hitchens published one of his most controversial articles titled "Why Women Aren't Funny" in ''Vanity Fair''. While providing no empirical evidence, he argued that there is less societal pressure for women to practice humour and that "women who do it play by men's rules". Over the following year, ''Vanity Fair'' published several letters that it received, objecting to the tone or premise of the article, as well as a rebuttal by
Alessandra Stanley Alessandra Stanley (born October 3, 1955) is an American journalist. As of 2019, she is the co-founder of a weekly newsletter "for worldly cosmopolitans" called ''Air Mail'', alongside former ''Vanity Fair'' editor-in-chief Graydon Carter. Biog ...
. Amid further criticism, Hitchens reiterated his position in a video and written response. In 2007 Hitchens's work for ''Vanity Fair'' won the
National Magazine Award The National Magazine Awards, also known as the Ellie Awards, honor print and digital publications that consistently demonstrate superior execution of editorial objectives, innovative techniques, noteworthy enterprise and imaginative design. Or ...
in the category "Columns and Commentary". He was a finalist in the same category in 2008 for some of his columns in ''
Slate Slate is a fine-grained, foliated, homogeneous, metamorphic rock derived from an original shale-type sedimentary rock composed of clay or volcanic ash through low-grade, regional metamorphism. It is the finest-grained foliated metamorphic ro ...
'' but lost out to
Matt Taibbi Matthew Colin Taibbi (; born March 2, 1970) is an American author, journalist and podcaster. A former contributing editor for ''Rolling Stone'', he is the author of several books and publisher of ''Racket News'' (formerly ''TK News''). He has re ...
of ''
Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. The magazine was first known fo ...
''. ''Hitch-22'' was short-listed for the 2010
National Book Critics Circle Award The National Book Critics Circle Awards are a set of annual American literary awards by the National Book Critics Circle (NBCC) to promote "the finest books and reviews published in English".Secular Coalition for America The Secular Coalition for America is an advocacy group located in Washington D.C. It describes itself as "protecting the equal rights of nonreligious Americans." The Secular Coalition has chapters in all 50 states and Puerto Rico, composed of lo ...
and offered advice to the Coalition on the acceptance and inclusion of nontheism in American life. In December 2011, prior to his death,
Asteroid An asteroid is a minor planet—an object larger than a meteoroid that is neither a planet nor an identified comet—that orbits within the Solar System#Inner Solar System, inner Solar System or is co-orbital with Jupiter (Trojan asteroids). As ...
57901 Hitchens was named after him.


Literature reviews

Hitchens wrote a monthly essay in ''
The Atlantic ''The Atlantic'' is an American magazine and multi-platform publisher based in Washington, D.C. It features articles on politics, foreign affairs, business and the economy, culture and the arts, technology, and science. It was founded in 185 ...
'' magazine and occasionally contributed to other literary journals. One of his books, ''Unacknowledged Legislation: Writers in the Public Sphere'', collected these works. In ''Why Orwell Matters'', he defends Orwell's writings against modern critics as relevant today and progressive for his time. In the 2008 book ''Christopher Hitchens and His Critics: Terror, Iraq, and the Left'', many literary critiques are included of essays and other books of writers, such as
David Horowitz David Joel Horowitz (January 10, 1939 – April 29, 2025) was an American conservative writer and activist. He was a founder and president of the David Horowitz Freedom Center (DHFC); editor of the Center's website '' FrontPage Magazine''; and ...
and
Edward Said Edward Wadie Said (1 November 1935 – 24 September 2003) was a Palestinian-American academic, literary critic, and political activist. As a professor of literature at Columbia University, he was among the founders of Postcolonialism, post-co ...
. During a three-hour ''
In Depth ''In Depth'' is a program on C-SPAN 2 as part of their Book TV programming that aired monthly from 2000-2023, featuring a different writer each month. Each interview covers the breadth of that author's writing career, and incorporates viewer cal ...
'' interview on
Book TV ''Book TV'' is the name given to weekend programming on the American cable network C-SPAN2, which airs from 8 a.m. Eastern Time Sunday morning to 8 a.m. Eastern Time Monday morning each week. The 24-hour block of programming is focused on no ...
, he named authors who influenced his views, including
Aldous Huxley Aldous Leonard Huxley ( ; 26 July 1894 – 22 November 1963) was an English writer and philosopher. His bibliography spans nearly 50 books, including non-fiction novel, non-fiction works, as well as essays, narratives, and poems. Born into the ...
,
George Orwell Eric Arthur Blair (25 June 1903 – 21 January 1950) was an English novelist, poet, essayist, journalist, and critic who wrote under the pen name of George Orwell. His work is characterised by lucid prose, social criticism, opposition to a ...
,
Evelyn Waugh Arthur Evelyn St. John Waugh (; 28 October 1903 – 10 April 1966) was an English writer of novels, biographies, and travel books; he was also a prolific journalist and book reviewer. His most famous works include the early satires ''Decli ...
,
Kingsley Amis Sir Kingsley William Amis (16 April 1922 – 22 October 1995) was an English novelist, poet, critic and teacher. He wrote more than 20 novels, six volumes of poetry, a memoir, short stories, radio and television scripts, and works of social crit ...
,
P. G. Wodehouse Sir Pelham Grenville Wodehouse ( ; 15 October 1881 – 14 February 1975) was an English writer and one of the most widely read humorists of the 20th century. His creations include the feather-brained Bertie Wooster and his sagacious valet, Je ...
and
Conor Cruise O'Brien Donal Conor David Dermot Donat Cruise O'Brien (3 November 1917 – 18 December 2008), often nicknamed "The Cruiser", was an Irish diplomat, politician, writer, historian and academic, who served as Minister for Posts and Telegraphs from 1973 ...
. He once remarked on the adage "everyone has a book inside of them" that this is "exactly where I think it should, in most cases, remain".


Professorships

Hitchens was a visiting professor in the following institutions: *
University of California, Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California), is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Berkeley, California, United States. Founded in 1868 and named after t ...
* The
University of Pittsburgh The University of Pittsburgh (Pitt) is a Commonwealth System of Higher Education, state-related research university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States. The university is composed of seventeen undergraduate and graduate schools and colle ...
*
The New School The New School is a Private university, private research university in New York City. It was founded in 1919 as The New School for Social Research with an original mission dedicated to academic freedom and intellectual inquiry and a home for p ...
of Social Research


Relationship with his brother

The journalist and author
Peter Hitchens Peter Jonathan Hitchens (born 1951) is an English Conservatism in the United Kingdom, conservative author, broadcaster, journalist, and commentator. He writes for ''The Mail on Sunday'' and was a Foreign correspondent (journalism), foreign cor ...
is Christopher's younger brother by two years. Christopher said in 2005 the main difference between the two is belief in the existence of God. Peter became a member of the International Socialists (forerunners of the modern Socialist Workers' Party) from 1968 to 1975 (beginning at age 17) after Christopher introduced him to them. The brothers reportedly fell out after Peter wrote a 2001 article in ''
The Spectator ''The Spectator'' is a weekly British political and cultural news magazine. It was first published in July 1828, making it the oldest surviving magazine in the world. ''The Spectator'' is politically conservative, and its principal subject a ...
'' which allegedly characterised Christopher as a
Stalinist Stalinism (, ) is the totalitarian means of governing and Marxist–Leninist policies implemented in the Soviet Union (USSR) from 1927 to 1953 by dictator Joseph Stalin and in Soviet satellite states between 1944 and 1953. Stalinism in ...
. After the birth of Peter's third child, the brothers were reconciled. Peter's review of ''
God Is Not Great ''God Is Not Great'' (sometimes stylized as ''god is not Great'') is a 2007 book by journalist Christopher Hitchens in which he makes a case against organized religion. It was originally published in the United Kingdom by Atlantic Books as ''Go ...
'' led to a public argument between the brothers but no renewed estrangement. In 2007 the brothers appeared as panellists on
BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...
TV's '' Question Time'', where they clashed on a number of issues. In 2008, in the US, they debated the 2003 invasion of Iraq and the
existence of God The existence of God is a subject of debate in the philosophy of religion and theology. A wide variety of arguments for and against the existence of God (with the same or similar arguments also generally being used when talking about the exis ...
. In 2010 at the
Pew Forum The Pew Research Center (also simply known as Pew) is a nonpartisan American think tank based in Washington, D.C. It provides information on social issues, public opinion, and demographic trends shaping the United States and the world. It als ...
, the pair debated the nature of God in civilisation. At the memorial service held for Christopher in New York, Peter read a passage from St Paul's
Epistle to the Philippians The Epistle to the Philippians is a Pauline epistle of the New Testament of the Christian Bible. The epistle is attributed to Paul the Apostle and Saint Timothy, Timothy is named with him as co-author or co-sender. The letter is addressed to ...
.


Political views

In 2009 Hitchens was listed by ''
Forbes ''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine founded by B. C. Forbes in 1917. It has been owned by the Hong Kong–based investment group Integrated Whale Media Investments since 2014. Its chairman and editor-in-chief is Steve Forbes. The co ...
'' magazine as one of the 25 “most influential liberals” in the US media. The article also noted that he would "likely be aghast to find himself on this list", as it reduces his self-styled radicalism to mere liberalism. Hitchens's political perspectives also appear in his wide-ranging writings, which include many dialogues. He said of
Ayn Rand Alice O'Connor (born Alisa Zinovyevna Rosenbaum; , 1905March 6, 1982), better known by her pen name Ayn Rand (), was a Russian-born American writer and philosopher. She is known for her fiction and for developing a philosophical system which s ...
's
objectivism Objectivism is a philosophical system named and developed by Russian-American writer and philosopher Ayn Rand. She described it as "the concept of man as a heroic being, with his own happiness as the moral purpose of his life, with productive a ...
, "I have always found it quaint, and rather touching, that there is a movement in the US that thinks Americans are not yet selfish enough." Hitchens disagreed with the premise of a Jewish homeland and had said of himself, "I am an
Anti-Zionist Anti-Zionism is opposition to Zionism. Although anti-Zionism is a heterogeneous phenomenon, all its proponents agree that the creation of the State of Israel in 1948, and the movement to create a sovereign Jewish state in the Palestine (region) ...
. I'm one of those people of Jewish descent who believes that Zionism would be a mistake even if there were no
Palestinians Palestinians () are an Arab ethnonational group native to the Levantine region of Palestine. *: "Palestine was part of the first wave of conquest following Muhammad's death in 632 CE; Jerusalem fell to the Caliph Umar in 638. The indigenou ...
." Having long described himself as a socialist and a Marxist, Hitchens began his break from the established political left after what he called the "tepid reaction" of the Western left to the controversy over ''
The Satanic Verses ''The Satanic Verses'' is the fourth novel from the Indian-British writer Salman Rushdie. First published in September 1988, the book was inspired by the life of the Islamic prophet Muhammad. As with his previous books, Rushdie used magical re ...
'', followed by what he saw as the left's embrace of Bill Clinton and the anti-war movement's opposition to
NATO intervention in Bosnia and Herzegovina The NATO intervention in Bosnia and Herzegovina was a series of actions undertaken by NATO whose stated aim was to establish long-term peace during and after the Bosnian War. NATO's intervention began as largely political and symbolic, but grad ...
in the 1990s. He later became a so-called liberal hawk and supported the War on Terror, but he had some reservations, such as his characterisation of
waterboarding Waterboarding is a form of torture in which water is poured over a cloth covering the face and breathing passages of an immobilized captive, causing the person to experience the sensation of drowning. In the most common method of waterboard ...
as torture after voluntarily undergoing the procedure. In January 2006, he joined four other individuals and four organisations, including the
ACLU The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) is an American nonprofit civil rights organization founded in 1920. ACLU affiliates are active in all 50 states, Washington, D.C., and Puerto Rico. The budget of the ACLU in 2024 was $383 million. ...
and
Greenpeace Greenpeace is an independent global campaigning network, founded in Canada in 1971 by a group of Environmental movement, environmental activists. Greenpeace states its goal is to "ensure the ability of the Earth to nurture life in all its biod ...
, as plaintiffs in a lawsuit, '' ACLU v. NSA'', challenging Bush's
NSA warrantless surveillance The National Security Agency (NSA) is an intelligence agency of the United States Department of Defense, under the authority of the director of national intelligence (DNI). The NSA is responsible for global monitoring, collection, and proces ...
; the lawsuit was filed by the ACLU. Hitchens was an avid critic of President
Slobodan Milošević Slobodan Milošević ( sr-Cyrl, Слободан Милошевић, ; 20 August 1941 – 11 March 2006) was a Yugoslav and Serbian politician who was the President of Serbia between 1989 and 1997 and President of the Federal Republic of Yugos ...
of Serbia and other Serbian politicians of the 1990s. He called Milošević a "
fascist Fascism ( ) is a far-right, authoritarian, and ultranationalist political ideology and movement. It is characterized by a dictatorial leader, centralized autocracy, militarism, forcible suppression of opposition, belief in a natural soci ...
" and a "
Nazi Nazism (), formally named National Socialism (NS; , ), is the far-right politics, far-right Totalitarianism, totalitarian socio-political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in Germany. During H ...
" after the
Bosnian genocide The Bosnian genocide () took place during the Bosnian War of 1992–1995 and included both the Srebrenica massacre and the wider crimes against humanity and ethnic cleansing in the Bosnian War, ethnic cleansing campaign perpetrated throughout ar ...
and
ethnic cleansing Ethnic cleansing is the systematic forced removal of ethnic, racial, or religious groups from a given area, with the intent of making the society ethnically homogeneous. Along with direct removal such as deportation or population transfer, it ...
of
Albanians The Albanians are an ethnic group native to the Balkan Peninsula who share a common Albanian ancestry, Albanian culture, culture, Albanian history, history and Albanian language, language. They are the main ethnic group of Albania and Kosovo, ...
in Kosovo and expressed a positive reaction to his death. Hitchens often accused the Serbian government of committing numerous war crimes during the
Yugoslav Wars The Yugoslav Wars were a series of separate but related#Naimark, Naimark (2003), p. xvii. ethnic conflicts, wars of independence, and Insurgency, insurgencies that took place from 1991 to 2001 in what had been the Socialist Federal Republic of ...
. He denounced
Noam Chomsky Avram Noam Chomsky (born December 7, 1928) is an American professor and public intellectual known for his work in linguistics, political activism, and social criticism. Sometimes called "the father of modern linguistics", Chomsky is also a ...
and Edward S. Herman, who criticised the NATO intervention there. Hitchens also criticised
Croatian president The president of Croatia, officially the president of the Republic of Croatia (), is the head of state, commander-in-chief of the military and chief representative of the Republic of Croatia both within the country and abroad. The president ...
Franjo Tuđman Franjo Tuđman (14 May 1922 – 10 December 1999) was a Croatian politician and historian who became the first president of Croatia, from 1990 until his death in 1999. He served following the Independence of Croatia, country's independe ...
and the policies of the Croatian government, which he saw as reviving " Ustashe formations". Hitchens held complex views on abortion; being ethically opposed to it in most instances, and believing that a
foetus A fetus or foetus (; : fetuses, foetuses, rarely feti or foeti) is the unborn offspring of a viviparous animal that develops from an embryo. Following the embryonic stage, the fetal stage of development takes place. Prenatal development is a ...
was entitled to
personhood Personhood is the status of being a person. Defining personhood is a controversial topic in philosophy and law and is closely tied with legal and political concepts of citizenship, equality, and liberty. According to law, only a legal person (ei ...
, while holding ambiguous and changing views on its legality. In a 1988 interview with ''Crisis Magazine'', Hitchens wrote: "It might interest your readers to know that Margaret Thatcher voted to keep capital punishment, to keep homosexuality criminal, to make divorce harder to get, and ''for'' the abortion bill. I gather that she's since changed her position on the latter. My own vote would have been, as so often, exactly the reverse of hers." However, Hitchens argued that the issue was cynically used by self-described
pro-life Anti-abortion movements, also self-styled as pro-life movements, are involved in the abortion debate advocating against the practice of abortion and its legality. Many anti-abortion movements began as countermovements in response to the lega ...
politicians, and doubted that they sincerely desired to legally prohibit abortion. In the same 1988 interview with ''Crisis Magazine'' he stated: "Once you allow that the occupant of the womb is even potentially a life, it cuts athwart any glib invocation of "the woman's right to choose" and that: Hitchens supported
gun rights The right to keep and bear arms (often referred to as the right to bear arms) is a legal right for people to possess weapons (arms) for the preservation of life, liberty, and property. The purpose of gun rights is for self-defense, as well as ...
and supported
same-sex marriage Same-sex marriage, also known as gay marriage, is the marriage of two people of the same legal Legal sex and gender, sex. marriage between same-sex couples is legally performed and recognized in 38 countries, with a total population of 1.5 ...
. Hitchens was a supporter of the
European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational union, supranational political union, political and economic union of Member state of the European Union, member states that are Geography of the European Union, located primarily in Europe. The u ...
. In an appearance on C-SPAN in 1993, Hitchens said, "As of 1992, there is now a Euro passport that makes you free to travel within the boundaries of ... member countries, and I've always liked the idea of European unity, and so I held out for a Euro passport. So I travel as a European." Speaking at the launch of his brother
Peter Peter may refer to: People * List of people named Peter, a list of people and fictional characters with the given name * Peter (given name) ** Saint Peter (died 60s), apostle of Jesus, leader of the early Christian Church * Peter (surname), a su ...
's book, ''
The Abolition of Britain ''The Abolition of Britain: From Lady Chatterley to Tony Blair'' (reissued in 2018 with the subtitle ''From Winston Churchill to Theresa May''; US subtitle: ''From Winston Churchill to Princess Diana'') is the first book by British conservative ...
'', at Conway Hall in London, Hitchens denounced the so-called Eurosceptic movement, describing it as "the British version of fascism". He went on to say, "Scepticism is a title of honour. These people are not sceptical. They're fanatical. They're dogmatic".


Critiques of specific individuals

Hitchens wrote book-length biographical essays on
Thomas Jefferson Thomas Jefferson (, 1743July 4, 1826) was an American Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father and the third president of the United States from 1801 to 1809. He was the primary author of the United States Declaration of Indepe ...
('' Thomas Jefferson: Author of America''),
Thomas Paine Thomas Paine (born Thomas Pain; – In the contemporary record as noted by Conway, Paine's birth date is given as January 29, 1736–37. Common practice was to use a dash or a slash to separate the old-style year from the new-style year. In ...
( ''Thomas Paine's "Rights of Man": A Biography''), and
George Orwell Eric Arthur Blair (25 June 1903 – 21 January 1950) was an English novelist, poet, essayist, journalist, and critic who wrote under the pen name of George Orwell. His work is characterised by lucid prose, social criticism, opposition to a ...
('' Why Orwell Matters''). He also became known for excoriating criticisms of public contemporary figures, including
Mother Teresa Mary Teresa Bojaxhiu (born Anjezë Gonxhe Bojaxhiu, ; 26 August 1910 – 5 September 1997), better known as Mother Teresa or Saint Mother Teresa, was an Albanian-Indian Catholic Church, Roman Catholic nun, founder of the Missionaries of ...
,
Bill Clinton William Jefferson Clinton (né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician and lawyer who was the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, ...
, and
Henry Kissinger Henry Alfred Kissinger (May 27, 1923 – November 29, 2023) was an American diplomat and political scientist who served as the 56th United States secretary of state from 1973 to 1977 and the 7th National Security Advisor (United States), natio ...
, the subjects of three full-length texts: '' The Missionary Position: Mother Teresa in Theory and Practice'', '' No One Left to Lie To: The Triangulations of William Jefferson Clinton'', and ''
The Trial of Henry Kissinger ''The Trial of Henry Kissinger'' is a 2001 book by Christopher Hitchens which examines the alleged war crimes of Henry Kissinger, the National Security Advisor and later, the U.S. Secretary of State for Presidents Richard Nixon and Gerald Ford. ...
''. Writers Nancy Gibbs and Michael Duffy published an article in ''
Time Time is the continuous progression of existence that occurs in an apparently irreversible process, irreversible succession from the past, through the present, and into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequ ...
'' in 2007, claiming that Hitchens, while promoting his book '' God Is Not Great: How Religion Poisons Everything'', described the Christian evangelist
Billy Graham William Franklin Graham Jr. (; November 7, 1918 – February 21, 2018) was an American Evangelism, evangelist, ordained Southern Baptist minister, and Civil rights movement, civil rights advocate, whose broadcasts and world tours featuring liv ...
as "a self-conscious fraud" and "a disgustingly evil man" and that the evangelist had made a living by "going around spouting lies to young people. What a horrible career. I gather it's soon to be over. I certainly hope so." They challenged Hitchens's suggestion that Graham went into ministry to make money. They argued that during his career Graham "turn ddown million-dollar television and Hollywood offers". They also pointed out that having established the
Billy Graham Evangelistic Association The Billy Graham Evangelistic Association (BGEA) is a non-profit Christian outreach organization that promotes multimedia evangelism, conducts evangelistic crusades, and engages in disaster response. The BGEA operates the Billy Graham Train ...
in 1950, Graham drew a straight salary, comparable to that of a senior minister, irrespective of the money raised by his meetings. In 1999, Hitchens wrote a profile of
Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who is the 47th president of the United States. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he served as the 45 ...
for ''
The Sunday Herald The ''Sunday Herald'' was a Scottish Sunday newspaper, published between 7 February 1999 and 2 September 2018. Originally a broadsheet, it was published in compact format from 20 November 2005. The paper was known for having combined a centre- ...
''. Trump had expressed interest in running in the
2000 United States presidential election United States presidential election, Presidential elections were held in the United States on November 7, 2000. Republican Party (United States), Republican Governor George W. Bush of Texas, the eldest son of 41st President George H. W. Bush, ...
as a candidate for the Reform Party. Of Trump, Hitchens said: Hitchens had previously written that Trump demonstrated how "nobody is more covetous and greedy than those who have far too much".


Criticism of religion

Hitchens was an antitheist, and said that a person "could be an atheist and wish that belief in God were correct", but that "an antitheist, a term I'm trying to get into circulation, is someone who is relieved that there's no evidence for such an assertion". He often spoke against the
Abrahamic religions The term Abrahamic religions is used to group together monotheistic religions revering the Biblical figure Abraham, namely Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. The religions share doctrinal, historical, and geographic overlap that contrasts them wit ...
. When asked by readers of ''
The Independent ''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publis ...
'' what he considered to be the "axis of evil", Hitchens replied "Christianity, Judaism,
Islam Islam is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the Quran, and the teachings of Muhammad. Adherents of Islam are called Muslims, who are estimated to number Islam by country, 2 billion worldwide and are the world ...
– the three leading monotheisms". In debates Hitchens often posed what has become known as "Hitchens's Challenge": to name at least one moral action that a person without a faith (i.e. an atheist or antitheist) could not possibly perform, and conversely, to name one immoral action that only a person with a faith could perform or has performed in the past. In his best-seller ''
God Is Not Great ''God Is Not Great'' (sometimes stylized as ''god is not Great'') is a 2007 book by journalist Christopher Hitchens in which he makes a case against organized religion. It was originally published in the United Kingdom by Atlantic Books as ''Go ...
'', Hitchens expanded his criticism to include all religions, including those rarely attacked by Western secularists, such as
Hinduism Hinduism () is an Hypernymy and hyponymy, umbrella term for a range of Indian religions, Indian List of religions and spiritual traditions#Indian religions, religious and spiritual traditions (Sampradaya, ''sampradaya''s) that are unified ...
,
Buddhism Buddhism, also known as Buddhadharma and Dharmavinaya, is an Indian religion and List of philosophies, philosophical tradition based on Pre-sectarian Buddhism, teachings attributed to the Buddha, a wandering teacher who lived in the 6th or ...
and
neo-paganism Modern paganism, also known as contemporary paganism and neopaganism, spans a range of new religious movements variously influenced by the beliefs of pre-modern peoples across Europe, North Africa, and the Near East. Despite some common simila ...
. Hitchens said that organised religion is "the main source of hatred in the world", calling it "violent, irrational, intolerant, allied to racism, tribalism, and bigotry, invested in ignorance and hostile to free inquiry, contemptuous of women and coercive toward children: tought to have a great deal on its conscience". In the same work Hitchens says that humanity therefore needs a renewed
Enlightenment Enlightenment or enlighten may refer to: Age of Enlightenment * Age of Enlightenment, period in Western intellectual history from the late 17th to late 18th century, centered in France but also encompassing (alphabetically by country or culture): ...
. The book received mixed responses, ranging from praise in ''
The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...
'' for his "logical flourishes and conundrums" to accusations of "intellectual and moral shabbiness" in the ''
Financial Times The ''Financial Times'' (''FT'') is a British daily newspaper printed in broadsheet and also published digitally that focuses on business and economic Current affairs (news format), current affairs. Based in London, the paper is owned by a Jap ...
''. ''God Is Not Great'' was nominated for a
National Book Award The National Book Awards (NBA) are a set of annual U.S. literary awards. At the final National Book Awards Ceremony every November, the National Book Foundation presents the National Book Awards and two lifetime achievement awards to authors. ...
on 10 October 2007. ''God Is Not Great'' affirmed Hitchens's position within the "
New Atheism New Atheism is a perspective shared by some atheist academics, writers, scientists, and philosophers of the 20th and 21st centuries, intolerant of superstition, religion, and irrationalism. New Atheists advocate the antitheist view that the v ...
" movement. Hitchens was made an honorary associate of the
Rationalist International Rationalist International is an organization with the stated aim to represent a rational view of the world. External linksRationalist International Homepage Rationalist groups based in India Organizations established in 1995 Atheist organizat ...
and the
National Secular Society The National Secular Society (NSS) is a British campaigning organisation that promotes secularism and the separation of church and state. It holds that no one should gain advantage or disadvantage because of their religion or lack of it. The Soc ...
shortly after its release, and was later named to the honorary board of distinguished achievers of the
Freedom From Religion Foundation The Freedom From Religion Foundation (FFRF) is an American nonprofit organization that advocates for atheism, atheists, agnosticism, agnostics, and nontheism, nontheists. Formed in 1976, FFRF promotes the separation of church and state, and ch ...
. He also joined the advisory board of the
Secular Coalition for America The Secular Coalition for America is an advocacy group located in Washington D.C. It describes itself as "protecting the equal rights of nonreligious Americans." The Secular Coalition has chapters in all 50 states and Puerto Rico, composed of lo ...
, a group of atheists and humanists. Hitchens said he would accept an invitation from any religious leader who wished to debate with him. On 30 September 2007,
Richard Dawkins Richard Dawkins (born 26 March 1941) is a British evolutionary biology, evolutionary biologist, zoologist, science communicator and author. He is an Oxford fellow, emeritus fellow of New College, Oxford, and was Simonyi Professor for the Publ ...
, Hitchens,
Sam Harris Samuel Benjamin Harris (born April 9, 1967) is an American philosopher, neuroscientist, author, and podcast host. His work touches on a range of topics, including rationality, religion, ethics, free will, determinism, neuroscience, meditation ...
, and
Daniel Dennett Daniel Clement Dennett III (March 28, 1942 – April 19, 2024) was an American philosopher and cognitive scientist. His research centered on the philosophy of mind, the philosophy of science, and the philosophy of biology, particularly as those ...
met at Hitchens's residence for a private, unmoderated discussion lasting two hours. The event was videotaped and entitled " The Four Horsemen". In it, Hitchens stated that he saw the
Maccabean Revolt The Maccabean Revolt () was a Jewish rebellion led by the Maccabees against the Seleucid Empire and against Hellenistic influence on Jewish life. The main phase of the revolt lasted from 167 to 160 BCE and ended with the Seleucids in control of ...
as the most unfortunate event in human history, due to the reversion from Hellenistic thought and philosophy to
messianism Messianism is the belief in the advent of a messiah who acts as the savior of a group of people. Some religions also have messianism-related concepts. Religions with a messiah concept include Hinduism (Kalki), Judaism ( Mashiach), Christianity ( ...
and fundamentalism that it constituted. That year Hitchens began a series of written debates on the question "Is Christianity Good for the World?" with the Christian theologian and pastor Douglas Wilson, published in ''
Christianity Today ''Christianity Today'' is an evangelical Christian media magazine founded in 1956 by Billy Graham. It is published by Christianity Today International based in Carol Stream, Illinois. ''The Washington Post'' calls ''Christianity Today'' "eva ...
'' magazine. This exchange eventually became a book with the same title published in 2008. During their promotional tour of the book, they were accompanied by the producer
Darren Doane Darren Doane (born September 20, 1972) is an American filmmaker, actor, and music video director.Collision In physics, a collision is any event in which two or more bodies exert forces on each other in a relatively short time. Although the most common use of the word ''collision'' refers to incidents in which two or more objects collide with great for ...
: Is Christianity GOOD for the World?,'' which was released on 27 October 2009. On 4 April 2009, Hitchens debated
William Lane Craig William Lane Craig (; born August 23, 1949) is an American Analytic philosophy, analytic philosopher, Christian apologetics, Christian apologist, author, and theologian. He is a professor of philosophy at Houston Christian University and at the T ...
on the existence of God at
Biola University Biola University () is a private, nondenominational, evangelical Christian university in La Mirada, California. It was founded in 1908 as the Bible Institute of Los Angeles. It has over 150 programs of study in nine schools offering bachelor' ...
. On 19 October 2009,
Intelligence Squared Intelligence Squared is a media company that organizes live debates and other cultural events around the world. It was founded in 2002 in London, where its head office is based, and has affiliates in the US, Australia, and Hong Kong. The debate ...
explored the question "Is the Catholic Church a force for good in the world?".
John Onaiyekan John Olorunfemi Onaiyekan (born 29 January 1944) is a Nigerian prelate of the Catholic Church. He was archbishop of the Latin Church archdiocese of Abuja from 1994 to 2019 and was made a cardinal in 2012. He has served as president of the Chris ...
and
Ann Widdecombe Ann Noreen Widdecombe (born 4 October 1947) is a British politician and television personality who has been Reform UK's Immigration and Justice spokesperson since 2023. Originally a member of the Conservative Party, she was Member of Parliame ...
argued that it was, while Hitchens joined
Stephen Fry Sir Stephen John Fry (born 24 August 1957) is an English actor, broadcaster, comedian, director, narrator and writer. He came to prominence as a member of the comic act Fry and Laurie alongside Hugh Laurie, with the two starring in ''A Bit of ...
in arguing that it was not. The latter won the debate according to an audience poll. Hitchens referred to '
Islamophobia Islamophobia is the irrational fear of, hostility towards, or hatred against the religion of Islam or Muslims in general. Islamophobia is primarily a form of religious or cultural bigotry; and people who harbour such sentiments often stereot ...
' as a "fake term" that is "dangerous" because it "insinuates that any reservations about Islam must
ipso facto is a Latin phrase, directly translated as "by the fact itself", which means that a specific phenomenon is a ''direct'' consequence, a resultant ''effect'', of the action in question, instead of being brought about by a previous action. (Contras ...
be 'phobic'. A phobia is an irrational fear or dislike. Islamic preaching very often manifests precisely this feature, which is why suspicion of it is by no means irrational". On 5 October 2010, Hitchens debated with
Tariq Ramadan Tariq Ramadan (, ; born 26 August 1962) is a Swiss Muslim academic, philosopher and writer. He was a professor of contemporary Islamic studies at St Antony's College, Oxford and the Faculty of Theology and Religion, University of Oxford, He is ...
as to whether Islam was a religion of peace, at 92NY. On 26 November 2010, Hitchens appeared in Toronto, Ontario, at the Munk Debates, where he debated religion with the former British prime minister
Tony Blair Sir Anthony Charles Lynton Blair (born 6 May 1953) is a British politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1997 to 2007 and Leader of the Labour Party (UK), Leader of the Labour Party from 1994 to 2007. He was Leader ...
, a convert to
Roman Catholicism The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...
. Blair argued that religion is a force for good, while Hitchens argued against. Throughout these debates, Hitchens became known for his persuasive and enthusiastic rhetoric. "Wit and eloquence", "verbal barbs and linguistic dexterity", and "self-reference, literary engagement and hyperbole" are all elements of his speeches. The term "hitch-slap" has been used as an informal term among his supporters for a carefully crafted remark designed to humiliate his opponents. Hitchens's line "one asks wistfully if there is no provision in the procedures of military justice for them to be taken out and shot", condemning the perpetrators of the
Abu Ghraib torture and prisoner abuse During the early stages of the Iraq War, members of the United States Army and the Central Intelligence Agency were accused of a series of human rights violations and war crimes against detainees in the Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq. These abuses ...
, was cited by ''
The Humanist ''The Humanist'' is an American bi-monthly magazine published in Washington, D.C. It was founded in 1941 by American Humanist Association. It covers topics in science, religion, media, technology, politics and popular culture and provides ethica ...
'' as an example. A tribute in ''
Politico ''Politico'' (stylized in all caps), known originally as ''The Politico'', is an American political digital newspaper company founded by American banker and media executive Robert Allbritton in 2007. It covers politics and policy in the Unit ...
'' stated that this was a trait Hitchens shared with his fellow atheist and intellectual
Gore Vidal Eugene Luther Gore Vidal ( ; born Eugene Louis Vidal, October 3, 1925 – July 31, 2012) was an American writer and public intellectual known for his acerbic epigrammatic wit. His novels and essays interrogated the Social norm, social and sexual ...
.


Personal life

Hitchens was raised nominally Christian and attended Christian boarding schools, but from an early age he declined to participate in communal prayers. Later in life, Hitchens discovered that he was of Jewish descent on his mother's side and that his Jewish ancestors were immigrants from Eastern Europe (including
Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...
). Hitchens was married twice, first to Eleni Meleagrou, a
Greek Cypriot Greek Cypriots (, ) are the ethnic Greek population of Cyprus, forming the island's largest ethnolinguistic community. According to the 2023 census, 719,252 respondents recorded their ethnicity as Greek, forming almost 99% of the 737,196 Cypri ...
, in 1981; the couple had two children, a son and a daughter. In 1991 Hitchens married his second wife, Carol Blue, an American screenwriter, in a ceremony held at the apartment of Victor Navasky, editor of ''The Nation''. They had a daughter together, Antonia. Hitchens considered reading, writing, and public speaking not as a job or career but as "what I am, who I am, ndwhat I love." In November 1973 Hitchens's mother died by suicide in
Athens Athens ( ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Greece, largest city of Greece. A significant coastal urban area in the Mediterranean, Athens is also the capital of the Attica (region), Attica region and is the southe ...
in a pact with her lover, a
defrocked Defrocking, unfrocking, degradation, or laicization of clergy is the removal of their rights to exercise the functions of the ordained ministry. It may be grounded on criminal convictions, disciplinary problems, or disagreements over doctrine or ...
clergyman named Timothy Bryan. The pair overdosed on sleeping pills in adjoining hotel rooms and Bryan slashed his wrists in the bathtub. Hitchens flew alone to Athens to recover his mother's body, initially under the impression that she had been murdered. In 2007, after living in the United States for twenty-five years, he became an
American citizen Citizenship of the United States is a legal status that entails Americans with specific rights, duties, protections, and benefits in the United States. It serves as a foundation of fundamental rights derived from and protected by the Consti ...
, electing to retain his
UK citizen The primary law governing nationality in the United Kingdom is the British Nationality Act 1981, which came into force on 1 January 1983. Regulations apply to the British Islands, which include the UK itself (England, Wales, Scotland, and North ...
ship.


Illness and death

On 8 June 2010, Hitchens was on tour in New York promoting his memoirs ''Hitch-22'' when he was taken into emergency care suffering from a severe
pericardial effusion A pericardial effusion is an abnormal accumulation of fluid in the pericardial cavity. The pericardium is a two-part membrane surrounding the heart: the outer fibrous Connective tissue, connective membrane and an inner two-layered serous membrane ...
. Soon after, he announced he was postponing his tour to undergo treatment for
oesophageal cancer Esophageal cancer (American English) or oesophageal cancer (British English) is cancer arising from the esophagus—the food pipe that runs between the throat and the stomach. Symptoms often include difficulty in swallowing and weight loss. Ot ...
. In a '' Vanity Fair'' piece published in 2010, titled "Topic of Cancer", he stated that he was undergoing treatment for cancer. He said that he recognised the long-term prognosis was far from positive and he would be a "very lucky person to live another five years". A heavy smoker and drinker since his teenage years, Hitchens acknowledged that these habits were likely to have contributed to his illness. During his illness, Hitchens was under the care of
Francis Collins Francis Sellers Collins (born April 14, 1950) is an American physician-scientist who discovered the genes associated with a number of diseases and led the Human Genome Project. He served as director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) ...
and was the subject of Collins's new cancer treatment, which maps out the
human genome The human genome is a complete set of nucleic acid sequences for humans, encoded as the DNA within each of the 23 distinct chromosomes in the cell nucleus. A small DNA molecule is found within individual Mitochondrial DNA, mitochondria. These ar ...
and selectively targets damaged
DNA Deoxyribonucleic acid (; DNA) is a polymer composed of two polynucleotide chains that coil around each other to form a double helix. The polymer carries genetic instructions for the development, functioning, growth and reproduction of al ...
. According to Christopher Buckley, before Hitchens died, his estranged friend
Sidney Blumenthal Sidney Stone Blumenthal (born November 6, 1948) is an American journalist, political operative, and Abraham Lincoln scholar. A former aide to Bill Clinton, he is a long-time confidant of Hillary Clinton, and was formerly employed by the Clinton ...
wrote to Hitchens. Buckley said the letter contained words of "tenderness and comfort and implicit forgiveness". Hitchens died of
pneumonia Pneumonia is an Inflammation, inflammatory condition of the lung primarily affecting the small air sacs known as Pulmonary alveolus, alveoli. Symptoms typically include some combination of Cough#Classification, productive or dry cough, ches ...
on 15 December 2011 in the
University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center (colloquially MD Anderson Cancer Center) is a comprehensive cancer center and autonomous university of the University of Texas System in Houston, Texas. It is the largest cancer center in the w ...
, Houston, aged 62. According to
Andrew Sullivan Andrew Michael Sullivan (born 10 August 1963) is a British-American political commentator. Sullivan is a former editor of ''The New Republic'', and the author or editor of six books. He started a political blog, ''The Daily Dish'', in 2000, and ...
, his last words were "Capitalism. Downfall." In accordance with Hitchens’s wishes, his body was donated to medical research. '' Mortality'', a collection of seven of Hitchens's '' Vanity Fair'' essays about his illness, was published
posthumously Posthumous may refer to: * Posthumous award, an award, prize or medal granted after the recipient's death * Posthumous publication, publishing of creative work after the author's death * Posthumous (album), ''Posthumous'' (album), by Warne Marsh, 1 ...
in September 2012.


Reactions to death

Former British prime minister
Tony Blair Sir Anthony Charles Lynton Blair (born 6 May 1953) is a British politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1997 to 2007 and Leader of the Labour Party (UK), Leader of the Labour Party from 1994 to 2007. He was Leader ...
said, "Christopher Hitchens was a complete one-off, an amazing mixture of writer, journalist, polemicist and unique character. He was fearless in the pursuit of truth and any cause in which he believed. And there was no belief he held that he did not advocate with passion, commitment and brilliance. He was an extraordinary, compelling and colourful human being whom it was a privilege to know."
Richard Dawkins Richard Dawkins (born 26 March 1941) is a British evolutionary biology, evolutionary biologist, zoologist, science communicator and author. He is an Oxford fellow, emeritus fellow of New College, Oxford, and was Simonyi Professor for the Publ ...
said of Hitchens, "He was a
polymath A polymath or polyhistor is an individual whose knowledge spans many different subjects, known to draw on complex bodies of knowledge to solve specific problems. Polymaths often prefer a specific context in which to explain their knowledge, ...
, a wit, immensely knowledgeable, and a valiant fighter against all tyrants, including imaginary supernatural ones." Dawkins later described Hitchens as "probably the best orator I've ever heard", and called his death "an enormous loss". The American
theoretical physicist Theoretical physics is a branch of physics that employs mathematical models and abstractions of physical objects and systems to rationalize, explain, and predict natural phenomena. This is in contrast to experimental physics, which uses experi ...
and
cosmologist Cosmology () is a branch of physics and metaphysics dealing with the nature of the universe, the cosmos. The term ''cosmology'' was first used in English in 1656 in Thomas Blount's ''Glossographia'', with the meaning of "a speaking of the wor ...
Lawrence Krauss Lawrence Maxwell Krauss (born May 27, 1954) is a Canadian-American theoretical physicist and cosmologist who taught at Arizona State University (ASU), Yale University, and Case Western Reserve University. He founded ASU's Origins Project in ...
said:
Bill Maher William MaherStated on ''Finding Your Roots'', January 12, 2016, PBS; on a series that lists "Jr." and "Sr." distinctions, Bill Maher's birth name was listed simply as William Maher, while his father was William Aloysius Maher Jr., and his pa ...
paid tribute to Hitchens on his show ''
Real Time with Bill Maher ''Real Time with Bill Maher'' is an American television talk show that airs weekly on HBO, hosted by stand-up comedy, comedian and political satire, political satirist Bill Maher. Much like his previous series ''Politically Incorrect'' on Comedy ...
'', saying, "We lost a hero of mine, a friend, and one of the great talk show guests of all time."
Salman Rushdie Sir Ahmed Salman Rushdie ( ; born 19 June 1947) is an Indian-born British and American novelist. His work often combines magic realism with historical fiction and primarily deals with connections, disruptions, and migrations between Eastern wor ...
and
Stephen Fry Sir Stephen John Fry (born 24 August 1957) is an English actor, broadcaster, comedian, director, narrator and writer. He came to prominence as a member of the comic act Fry and Laurie alongside Hugh Laurie, with the two starring in ''A Bit of ...
paid tribute at the Christopher Hitchens Vanity Fair Memorial 2012. The British conservative author and friend of Hitchens Douglas Murray paid tribute to him in an article in ''
The Spectator ''The Spectator'' is a weekly British political and cultural news magazine. It was first published in July 1828, making it the oldest surviving magazine in the world. ''The Spectator'' is politically conservative, and its principal subject a ...
'', recalling personal experiences with him. Three weeks before Hitchens's death,
George Eaton George Eaton may refer to: * George Eaton (racing driver) (born 1945), Canadian former racing driver * George Eaton (cricketer) (1904–1938), Australian cricketer *George Eaton (journalist) George Eaton (born 27 November 1986) is a British write ...
of the ''New Statesman'' wrote, "He is determined to ensure that he is not remembered simply as a 'lefty who turned right' or as a contrarian and provocateur. Throughout his career, he has retained a commitment to the Enlightenment values of reason, secularism, and pluralism. His targets—Mother Teresa, Bill Clinton, Henry Kissinger, God—are chosen not at random, but rather because they have offended one or more of these principles. The tragedy of Hitchens's illness is that it came at a time when he enjoyed a larger audience than ever. The great polemicist is certain to be remembered, but, as he was increasingly aware, perhaps not as he would like." ''
The Chronicle of Higher Education ''The Chronicle of Higher Education'' is an American newspaper and website that presents news, information, and jobs for college and university faculty and student affairs professionals, including staff members and administrators. A subscription ...
'' asked if Hitchens was the last public intellectual. During an interview with Alex O'Connor, the discussion turned to Larry Taunton's book, The Faith of Christopher Hitchens, released after Hitchens's death, which claimed that Hitchens started to flirt with spirituality.
Richard Dawkins Richard Dawkins (born 26 March 1941) is a British evolutionary biology, evolutionary biologist, zoologist, science communicator and author. He is an Oxford fellow, emeritus fellow of New College, Oxford, and was Simonyi Professor for the Publ ...
replied, "It's a disgraceful book. auntontook advantage of a long car journey he had with Christopher Hitchens and I think Christopher was probably being polite and talking seriously to him about his religion." Dawkins added, "Religious apologists are so eager to get deathbed conversions that you have to watch it. Well actually, Christopher I think himself said that, 'if anybody claims that I had a deathbed conversion you can be absolutely sure that I wasn't in my right mind when its happened'."
David Frum David Jeffrey Frum (; born 30 June 1960) is a Canadian-American political commentator and a former speechwriter for President George W. Bush. He is a senior editor at ''The Atlantic'' as well as an MSNBC contributor. In 2003, Frum authored the ...
, writing in ''The Atlantic'', states, "In the months before he died, Hitchens repeatedly and emphatically warned that claims like Taunton's would be forthcoming and should be disbelieved." In his posthumously published book, ''Mortality'', Hitchens wrote, "If I convert it's because it's better that a believer dies than that an atheist does."


The Hitchens Prize

In 2015, an annual prize of $50,000 was established in his honour by The Dennis and Victoria Ross Foundation for "an author or journalist whose work reflects a commitment to free expression and inquiry, a range and depth of intellect, and a willingness to pursue the truth without regard to personal or professional consequence". The foundation's website states the Hitchens Prize "seeks to advance what he was dedicated to throughout his life: vigorous, honest, and open public debate and discussion, with no tolerance of orthodoxy, no reverence for authority, and a belief in reasoned dialogue as the best path to the truth". The 2024 winner was
Errol Morris Errol Mark Morris (born February 5, 1948) is an American film director known for documentaries that interrogate the epistemology of their subjects, and the invention of the Interrotron. In 2003, his '' The Fog of War: Eleven Lessons from the Li ...
.


Film and television appearances


Books

* * * * * * 1990: '' Blood, Class and Nostalgia: Anglo-American Ironies'', Farrar Straus & Giroux (T), * 1993: ''For the Sake of Argument: Essays and Minority Reports'', Verso, * 1995: '' The Missionary Position: Mother Teresa in Theory and Practice'', Verso * 1997: ''The Parthenon Marbles: The Case for Reunification'', Verso, * 1999: '' No One Left to Lie To: The Values of the Worst Family'', original hardcover title: ''No One Left to Lie To: The Triangulations of William Jefferson Clinton'', Verso * 2000: '' Unacknowledged Legislation: Writers in the Public Sphere'', Verso, ISBN 9781859847862 * 2001: ''
The Trial of Henry Kissinger ''The Trial of Henry Kissinger'' is a 2001 book by Christopher Hitchens which examines the alleged war crimes of Henry Kissinger, the National Security Advisor and later, the U.S. Secretary of State for Presidents Richard Nixon and Gerald Ford. ...
'', Verso, * 2001: ''
Letters to a Young Contrarian ''Letters to a Young Contrarian'' is Christopher Hitchens' contribution, released in November2001, to the '' Art of Mentoring'' series published by Basic Books. Inspired by his students at The New School in New York City and "a challenge that wa ...
'', Basic Books * 2002: '' Left Hooks, Right Crosses: A Decade of Political Writing'', Bold Type Books, * 2002: '' Orwell's Victory'', Allen Lane/Penguin Press, (UK Edition). US edition as '' Why Orwell Matters'', Basic Books, * 2003: '' A Long Short War: The Postponed Liberation of Iraq'', Plume/Penguin Group, * 2004: '' Love, Poverty, and War: Journeys and Essays'', Thunder's Mouth, Nation Books, * 2005: '' Thomas Jefferson: Author of America'', Eminent Lives/Atlas Books/HarperCollins Publishers, * 2007: '' Thomas Paine's Rights of Man: A Biography'', Atlantic Monthly Press, * 2007: ''
God Is Not Great ''God Is Not Great'' (sometimes stylized as ''god is not Great'') is a 2007 book by journalist Christopher Hitchens in which he makes a case against organized religion. It was originally published in the United Kingdom by Atlantic Books as ''Go ...
: How Religion Poisons Everything'', Twelve/Hachette Book Group USA/Warner Books, / Published in the UK as ''God is not Great: The Case Against Religion'', Atlantic Books, * 2007: '' The Portable Atheist: Essential Readings for the Non-Believer'', ditorPerseus Publishing. * 2008: ''Christopher Hitchens and His Critics: Terror, Iraq and the Left'' (with Simon Cottee and Thomas Cushman), New York University Press, * 2008: ''Is Christianity Good for the World?'' (co-author, with Douglas Wilson),
Canon Press Canon Press is a Christian publishing house in Moscow, Idaho. It was founded by Douglas Wilson (theologian), Doug Wilson in 1988 as a literature ministry of his Christ Church (Moscow, Idaho), Christ Church. It has published more than 100 books by ...
, * 2010: '' Hitch-22: A Memoir'', Twelve, * 2011: '' Arguably: Essays by Christopher Hitchens'', Twelve. UK edition as ''Arguably: Selected Prose'', Atlantic, * 2012: '' Mortality'', Twelve, . UK edition as ''Mortality'', Atlantic Books, * 2015: ''And Yet...: Essays'', Simon & Schuster, * 2024: ''A Hitch in Time: Reflections Ready for Reconsideration'', Twelve,


Footnotes


References


External links


2010 archive of official website

Memorial webpage

Contributor page
at '' Vanity Fair''
Columnist
at ''
Slate Slate is a fine-grained, foliated, homogeneous, metamorphic rock derived from an original shale-type sedimentary rock composed of clay or volcanic ash through low-grade, regional metamorphism. It is the finest-grained foliated metamorphic ro ...
''
Column archive
at ''
The Atlantic ''The Atlantic'' is an American magazine and multi-platform publisher based in Washington, D.C. It features articles on politics, foreign affairs, business and the economy, culture and the arts, technology, and science. It was founded in 185 ...
''
Article archive
at ''
The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...
'' * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Hitchens, Christopher 1949 births 2011 deaths 20th-century American essayists 20th-century atheists 20th-century English non-fiction writers 20th-century English philosophers 21st-century American essayists 21st-century American memoirists 21st-century American philosophers 21st-century atheists 21st-century British essayists 21st-century English memoirists 21st-century English philosophers Alcohol-related deaths in Texas Alumni of Balliol College, Oxford American anti-capitalists American anti-fascists American anti–Vietnam War activists American autobiographers American bisexual writers American critics of religions American democratic socialists American foreign policy writers American humanists American LGBTQ rights activists American male essayists American male non-fiction writers American media critics American non-fiction writers American skeptics American writers on atheism Anti-monarchists Atheist philosophers The Atlantic (magazine) people Bisexual male writers British anti-Zionists British anti–Vietnam War activists British atheism activists British critics of Christianity British critics of Islam British critics of postmodernism British critics of religions British foreign policy writers British media critics British opinion journalists British philosophers of culture British philosophers of religion
Christopher Hitchens Christopher Eric Hitchens (13 April 1949 – 15 December 2011) was a British and American author and journalist. He was the author of Christopher Hitchens bibliography, 18 books on faith, religion, culture, politics, and literature. He was born ...
Conversationalists Critics of alternative medicine Critics of Buddhism Critics of creationism Critics of Judaism Critics of multiculturalism Critics of new religious movements Critics of the Catholic Church Deaths from esophageal cancer in Texas English anti-fascists English autobiographers English communists English emigrants to the United States English essayists English humanists English journalists English LGBTQ rights activists English literary critics English male essayists English male journalists English male non-fiction writers English Marxists English non-fiction writers English people of Polish-Jewish descent English political commentators English political philosophers English political writers English republicans English sceptics English writers on atheism European democratic socialists Genital integrity activists Jewish American atheism activists Jewish British anti-Zionists Labour Party (UK) people Materialists The Nation (U.S. magazine) people Naturalized citizens of the United States New Atheism New Statesman people PEN/Diamonstein-Spielvogel Award winners People educated at Mount House School, Tavistock People educated at The Leys School Philosophers of literature Philosophers of social science Philosophers of war Secular humanists Slate (magazine) people Socialist Workers Party (UK) members Theorists on Western civilization Vanity Fair (magazine) people Writers about activism and social change Writers about globalization Writers about religion and science Writers from Portsmouth Writers from Washington, D.C.