Emmanuel Macron, elected president since 2017, is one of France's current influential leaders both domestically and internationally. According to analysts, Macron's character encompasses both leadership strength and a reformist approach, as well as difficulties in connecting with the public and elements of centralized governance.
The French leader pursues a centrist policy, attempting to unite the ideas of both the left and right wings.
E. Macron is also distinguished by his oratorical skills and communication abilities, actively speaking on behalf of France in the international arena.
He has attempted to implement a series of reforms in economic and social spheres in France (pension reform, liberalization of the labor market, etc.). However, during these reforms, certain social dissatisfactions arose, and mass protests accompanied by violence took place.
Macron is a proponent of strengthening the European Union and prioritizes international cooperation. This transforms him into a significant figure among global leaders.
Alongside this, due to some of his speeches and decisions, he is perceived by the public as a “politician distant from the people”.
Some critics state that he demonstrates a highly centralized approach in his decision-making process. His “top-down” management style is sometimes harshly criticized in a democratic country like France.
Macron's popularity in France frequently fluctuates. This indicates that he does not possess stable public support.
Among the key figures who have shaped the French president's life and played a significant role in the formation of his character, his parents are undoubtedly included. So, who are they?
Modern.az website this time features Emmanuel Macron's parents in its "Leaders' Parents" section.
Emmanuel Macron was born on December 21, 1977, in Amiens, a city in northern France, into a family of doctors. The early death of his sister, born before him, had been a difficult experience for his parents.
For this reason, when Emmanuel was born, his parents, as they say, doted on him.
Macron's parents met while they were students in the medical field and later married.
The President's father, Jean-Michel Macron, was born in 1950 in Amiens, France. Jean-Michel is a renowned neurologist. His medical practice was not limited to diagnosis and treatment alone. Jean-Michel offered his patients both healing and the opportunity to be heard and understood. His office featured wall-to-wall shelves filled with books – medicine, philosophy, classical literature...
Jean-Michel Macron, a professor of neurology, also taught at the University of Picardy, located in the province.
Emmanuel Macron's mother, Françoise Noguès, is also a doctor, a doctor of medical sciences. She was formerly a psychotherapist working in the social field.
However, as Emmanuel himself recalls, it was his maternal grandmother, Manette, who raised him from the age of 5 and instilled in him a love for books, classical music, and the piano.
The President wrote in his autobiography: "I was very close to my grandmother until her death. She was a college principal. If there is a source for my convictions and political views, it is my grandmother." It was his grandmother who instilled in Emmanuel knowledge of literature and philosophy, and an appreciation for left-wing views. The woman passed away in 2013.
Despite being under his grandmother's care, the future president's parents also paid special attention to their children. There were three children in their family - two boys and one girl: Emmanuel (1977), Laurent (1979), Estelle (1982).
His parents recall that Emmanuel was always a trouble-free child. He excelled in school and constantly made his parents proud.
When Emmanuel was 16 and fell in love with his French teacher, Brigitte Trogneux, who was 24 years his senior, he first confided this “secret” to his grandmother, who supported him. According to the current French president's wife, “nothing would have happened without the grandmother's help”.
The President's mother, Françoise, was offended by her grandmother's action. “Unfortunately, my mother, who would never have allowed such a situation for her own children, showed herself to be more open and tolerant in her grandson's romantic relationships,” she stated in a press interview.
Apparently, Emmanuel's mother did not want her son to marry a woman 24 years his senior.
Macron's mother, Françoise Noguès, was a doctor-psychotherapist who always treated her patients with care. This stemmed from the fact that Madame Françoise had experienced life's difficulties at an early age - during her childhood.
The Macron family home was not a typical bourgeois house. Wealth there was not measured by furniture. The most valuable things in the family home were books. Emmanuel became acquainted with Voltaire, Rousseau, and Camus in this house. His mother used to tell him: “Reading a book is like inviting yourself into another person's soul.” This phrase left such a deep impression on Emmanuel's memory that he used it in several of his speeches as president.
Françoise and Jean-Michel often engaged in philosophical conversations with friends at home, while their son Emmanuel would either listen to these discussions from behind the door or, reading a book in a corner, absorb everything into his memory without distraction.
Emmanuel received his secondary education at a provincial Christian school. He later graduated from the Philosophy Faculty of Paris Nanterre University in 1999, followed by studies at the Institute of Political Studies (graduating in 2001), known as the school of France's political elite, and the prestigious National School of Administration in Strasbourg (graduating in 2004).
The future president's official career began as a financial inspector at the Ministry of Economy (2004-2008).
Emmanuel Macron entered politics in 2006 by joining the Socialist Party. In 2011, he joined the election headquarters of François Hollande, the socialist presidential candidate, and participated in the preparation of the program's economic section.
Friends referred to the future president's father, Jean-Michel Macron, as a “taciturn intellectual”. Although he was initially skeptical of his son's interest in politics, he later understood that Emmanuel's path was different.
“He had a strange charm and stubbornness. It was as if he drew his thoughts not from the depths of his mind, but from within his soul,” Jean-Michel said in one of his interviews when speaking about his son.
Emmanuel Macron's parents reacted very harshly when they learned about their son's relationship with his teacher, Brigitte Trogneux. They considered this love unusual both in terms of the age difference and societal norms. The desire to distance this relationship even lay behind Emmanuel's being sent to study in Paris. However, over time, Françoise and Jean-Michel understood that they could not stand in the way of their son's choice. As a result, they had to accept this marriage - because they knew well that Emmanuel was resolute in his decisions.
Jean-Michel and Françoise never openly interfered in their son's career.
It should be noted that Emmanuel Macron's parents divorced in 1980, but both maintained their relationship with their son. Each of them later remarried. Emmanuel Macron also has half-siblings from both his father's and mother's sides.
Professor of Neurology Jean-Michel Macron is currently not in active medical practice and is retired. Although he does not interfere in his son's political career, he rarely appears in the media. The 74-year-old former neurologist still lives in the old family home in the provincial city of Amiens.
The President's mother is also alive; Françoise Noguès, now retired, has focused more on her family and personal life in recent years.
In his latest statement to the press, father Macron expressed his thoughts on the current political situation in France, stating that he is 80 percent satisfied with all of his son's actions: “I don't think Emmanuel has made any major mistakes.”
At the same time, he also admitted that he communicates very rarely with his son, the French president. “Last Sunday was my birthday, and he didn't even congratulate me.”
The President's mother, Françoise Noguès, stated in an interview with “Le Point” newspaper that her son had shocked her when he fell in love with his teacher at the age of 16:
“At that time, my son often visited his teacher Brigitte Trogneux's house. We then assumed that Emmanuel was dating Brigitte's daughter, Laurence, because they were the same age. But we were mistaken.”
When the parents realized that their son was seriously in love with Brigitte, they decided to meet with the woman. They asked Brigitte Trogneux to leave Emmanuel alone and explained to her that this relationship was impossible.
"But she told us she couldn't promise anything," recalls Emmanuel Macron's mother.
“Ultimately, the only thing we asked of her was to allow my son to pursue his education and not hinder his career.”
Brigitte agreed to this request and allowed her young lover to prepare for university. When 17-year-old Emmanuel finished high school and left his hometown of Amiens, he promised his teacher that he would return and marry her when he turned 30.
Emmanuel was not bothered by Brigitte's age, her being married, or having three children. He kept his word - the couple married in 2007. At that time, Brigitte had already been divorced from her previous husband for a year. The marriage took place when Emmanuel was 30 and Brigitte was 54.
The President's mother says that over the years, she has had to accept the relationship between her son and his wife: “Now I consider Brigitte not my daughter-in-law, but more of a friend. We have the same interests, the same priorities, and we share everything."
Madame Françoise says that, like every mother, it is important for her that her children are happy:
"For a while, I worried that my son would never have his own children. I look at his brother Laurent, who has four children, and I can't believe that Emmanuel is deprived of the joy of fatherhood."
Brigitte Macron has three children from her first husband: her son Sébastien (born 1975, currently an engineer), and her daughters Laurence (born 1977, a cardiologist) and Tiphaine (born 1984, a lawyer). The 72-year-old Brigitte has already become a grandmother for the seventh time.
Foreign press reports that Brigitte no longer plans to have children with 48-year-old Emmanuel. It is also stated that this is already impossible. Generally, foreign media does not approach France's current First Lady unambiguously. Unpleasant articles about her are published from time to time – according to some claims, Brigitte Macron is a transgender person who has changed her gender. The French president and his wife have had to deny these claims repeatedly. The matter has even reached court.
Although Emmanuel Macron sometimes faces criticism as a leader, his place in the complex political landscape of modern France is undeniable. Macron remains one of the prominent figures in 21st-century Europe as a politician. The calls for change he brought to the political scene marked the beginning of a new era in France. Time will tell how these calls will be remembered...
A. Gafarli
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