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Emmanuel Macron
Emmanuel Macron 2023 (cropped).jpg
Macron in 2023
25th President of France
Assumed office
14 May 2017
Prime Minister Édouard Philippe
Jean Castex
Élisabeth Borne
Gabriel Attal
Preceded by François Hollande
Minister of Economics, Industry and Digital Affairs
In office
26 August 2014 – 30 August 2016
Prime Minister Manuel Valls
Preceded by Arnaud Montebourg
Succeeded by Michel Sapin
Deputy Secretary-General to the President
In office
15 May 2012 – 15 July 2014
President François Hollande
Preceded by Jean Castex
Succeeded by Laurence Boone
Additional positions
(see § Offices and distinctions)
Personal details
Born
Emmanuel Jean-Michel Frédéric Macron

(1977-12-21) 21 December 1977 (age 46)
Amiens, Somme, France
Political party Renaissance
(2016–present)
Other political
affiliations
Spouse
(m. 2007)
Parent
  • Jean-Michel Macron (father)
Relatives Laurence Auzière-Jourdan (stepdaughter)
Residence Élysée Palace
Alma mater
Awards List of honours and decorations
Signature
Co-Prince of Andorra
Reign 14 May 2017 – present
Predecessor François Hollande

Emmanuel Jean-Michel Frédéric Macron ( born 21 December 1977) is a French politician who has been President of France since 2017.

Early life

Macron was born on 21 December 1977 in Amiens. He is the son of Françoise Macron (née Noguès), a physician, and Jean-Michel Macron, professor of neurology at the University of Picardy. The couple divorced in 2010. He has two siblings, Laurent, born in 1979, and Estelle, born in 1982. Françoise and Jean-Michel's first child was stillborn.

Education

Macron was educated mainly at the Jesuit institute Lycée la Providence in Amiens before his parents sent him to finish his last year of school at the elite Lycée Henri-IV in Paris. His parents sent him to Paris due to their alarm at the bond he had formed with Brigitte Auzière, a married teacher with three children at Jésuites de la Providence, who later became his wife.

Macron studied philosophy at Paris Nanterre University, later completing a master's degree in public affairs at Sciences Po and graduating from the École nationale d'administration in 2004.

Early career

After graduating, Macron worked as a senior civil servant at the Inspectorate General of Finances and later became an investment banker.

He joined the Socialist Party at the age of 24. In May 2012, Macron was appointed Élysée deputy secretary-general by President François Hollande. He then served as Minister of Economics, Industry and Digital Affairs from 2014 to 2016, resigning to launch his 2017 presidential campaign. Macron was elected President of France on 7 May 2017, defeating Marine Le Pen of the National Front.

Presidency (2017–present)

In his first few months as president, Macron pressed for the enactment of a package of reforms on public ethics, labour laws, taxes, and a renewable energy transition. In 2017, Macron signed into law a controversial anti-terror bill, which gives authorities expanded power to search homes, restrict movement, close places of worship, and search areas around train stations and international ports and airports. In December 2019, Macron announced that he would scrap the 20th-century pension system and introduce a single national pension system managed by the state. This lead to the pension reform strike with weeks of public transport shutdown and vandalism across Paris. In January 2020, Macron compromised on the plan by revising the retirement age from 62 to 64.

Macron was elected to a second term in the 2022 presidential election, again defeating Marine Le Pen.

In foreign policy, Macron called for reforms to the European Union (EU), stating that effective defence policy and quick decision-making held the key for Europe. He added that reliance on NATO and especially the US and the UK was not good for Europe, and a dialogue must be established with Russia.

During his tenure, Macron signed bilateral treaties with Italy and Germany. He conducted €42 billion in trade and business agreements with China during the China–United States trade war and oversaw a dispute with Australia and the United States over the AUKUS security pact.

Macron views fighting Islamist terrorism at home and abroad as France's top priority. On 1 August 2023, Macron signed into law a multi-year military planning bill, which set the stage for a 40%-increase in military spending to a total of €413 billion between 2024 and 2030, after it was passed by the French parliament on 13 July 2023.

Personal life

Emmanuel et Brigitte Macron (cropped)
Emmanuel Macron and his wife Brigitte in 2017

Macron is married to Brigitte Trogneux, a former teacher 24 years his senior, and his former La Providence high school teacher in Amiens. They met during a theatre workshop that she was giving when he was a 15-year-old student and she was a 39-year-old teacher. His parents initially attempted to separate the couple by sending him away to Paris to finish the final year of his schooling. The couple reunited after Macron graduated, and were married in 2007. She has three children from a previous marriage; he has no children of his own.

Interesting facts about Emmanuel Macron

2018 World Cup Final (2018-07-15) 02
Macron celebrating France's victory over Croatia in the 2018 World Cup final in Moscow, Russia
  • Macron is the youngest president in French history.
  • He is also the first French presidential candidate to win reelection since Jacques Chirac.
  • As president of France, Macron also serves ex officio as one of the two co-princes of Andorra.
  • Macron is a fan of football. He is a supporter of Olympique de Marseille.
  • He and his wife Brigitte have a dog named Nemo, a black Labrador Retriever-Griffon who lives with them in the Élysée Palace.
  • Macron plays the piano, and studied piano for ten years in his youth. He especially enjoys the work of Robert Schumann and Franz Liszt.
  • He also skis, plays tennis and enjoys boxing.
  • In addition to his native French, Macron speaks fluent English.

Honours and decorations

National honours

Ribbon bar Honour Date and comment
Legion Honneur GC ribbon.svg Grand Master and Grand Cross of the National Order of the Legion of Honour 14 May 2017 – automatic upon taking presidential office
Ordre national du Merite GC ribbon.svg Grand Master and Grand Cross of the National Order of Merit 14 May 2017 – automatic upon taking presidential office

Foreign honours

Ribbon bar Country Honour Date
Order of the British Empire (Civil) Ribbon.png  United Kingdom Honorary Commander of the Order of the British Empire 5 June 2014
MEX Order of the Aztec Eagle 1Class BAR.png  Mexico Sash of the Order of the Aztec Eagle 22 September 2016
GRE Order Redeemer 1Class.svg  Greece Grand Cross of the Order of the Redeemer 7 September 2017
Lebanese Order of Merit Grand Cordon.gif  Lebanon Grand Cross of the Order of Merit 22 September 2017
Order of the Republic (Tunisia) - ribbon bar.gif  Tunisia Grand Cordon of the Order of the Republic of Tunisia 31 January 2018
SEN Order of the Lion - Grand Cross BAR.svg  Senegal Grand Cross of the National Order of the Lion 2 February 2018
Ordre du Lion d'Or de la Maison de Nassau ribbon.svg  Luxembourg Knight of the Order of the Gold Lion of the House of Nassau 19 March 2018
Order of the Elephant Ribbon bar.svg  Denmark Knight of the Order of the Elephant 28 August 2018
FIN Order of the White Rose Grand Cross BAR.svg  Finland Grand Cross of the Order of the White Rose with Collar 29 August 2018
Grand Order of Mugunghwa (South Korea) - ribbon bar.gif  South Korea Grand Order of Mugunghwa 8 October 2018
BEL - Order of Leopold - Grand Cordon bar.svg  Belgium Grand Cordon of the Order of Leopold 19 November 2018
Cote d'Ivoire Ordre national GC ribbon.svg  Ivory Coast Grand Cross of the National Order of the Ivory Coast 20 December 2019
EGY Order of the Nile - Grand Cordon BAR.svg  Egypt Collar of the Order of the Nile 7 December 2020
US Legion of Merit Chief Commander ribbon.png  United States Chief Commander of the Legion of Merit 8 December 2020
ITA OMRI 2001 GC-GCord BAR.svg  Italy Knight Grand Cross with Collar of the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic 1 July 2021
Ribbon bar of the Order of Zayed.svg  United Arab Emirates Collar of the Order of Zayed 18 July 2022
Order of the Netherlands Lion ribbon - Knight Grand Cross.svg  Netherlands Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Netherlands Lion 11 April 2023
Order of the Bath (ribbon).svg  United Kingdom Honorary Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath 20 September 2023
Order of the Seraphim - Ribbon bar.svg  Sweden Knight of the Royal Order of the Seraphim 30 January 2024
MD Orden of Republicl Rib.png  Moldova Order of the Republic 7 March 2024
BRA - Order of the Southern Cross - Grand Cross BAR.svg  Brazil Collar of the Order of the Southern Cross. Grand officer as Deputy Secretary-General to the President on 9 December 2012. 28 March 2024

Prizes

  • Le Trombinoscope (2014, 2016)
  • Charlemagne Prize (2018)
  • Champion of the Earth (2018)
  • Westfälischer Friedenspreis [de] (2024)

Images for kids

See also

Kids robot.svg In Spanish: Emmanuel Macron para niños

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