Bismarck was noted for his flamboyant lifestyle that some called ‘dissolute’ after he died, and his homes were linked to two deaths from narcotics, but he was not found responsible for either.

Bismarck's great uncle and namesake Count Gottfried was a Nazi official who may have been part of the 20 July plot to assassinate Adolf Hitler.

His younger sister Vanessa Gräfin von Bismarck-Schönhausen (born 26 March 1971, Hamburg) is a public relations agent in the United States.

He attended school in Germany and Switzerland, had a brief internship at the New York Stock Exchange, then enrolled at Christ Church, Oxford University, where he studied Philosophy, Politics and Economics (PPE) earning a third class honours degree.

[3] Confessing that he did not enjoy the typical social life in Oxford, he and his friends escaped to the wild, fashionable parties in London on the weekends or whenever possible.

[4] His father Prince Ferdinand recalled him to Germany for treatment at a private clinic, and it was said he left Oxford so quickly that a family servant had to settle his bills with pubs, tailors and restaurants.

Later, after having spent some time in Los Angeles, he went to work as an executive for the now defunct Telemonde with the intent to raise capital from the stock market before its collapse in 2002.

[citation needed] The coroner Dr Paul Knapman told The Guardian that a great deal of sexual paraphernalia was discovered in the flat, including sex toys and lubricants.