Brigitte and Emmanuel Macron.Photo:Marc Piasecki/GC Images
Marc Piasecki/GC Images
Brigitte Macron says that entertaining a relationship with her now-husband, French PresidentEmmanuel Macron, was initially “crippling,” due to their24-year age gap— and the fact that she was his high school teacher at the time.
Brigitte — who opened up about her marriage’s controversial beginnings in a new interview withParis Match— was a 39-year-old drama teacher at a Catholic school in northern France when Emmanuel, then 15, developed feelings for her.
Brigitte and Emmanuel Macron visit with Joe and Jill Biden at the White House in December 2022.Chris Kleponis/CNP/Bloomberg via Getty
While Emmanuel’s parents initially suspected he was dating Brigitte’s daughter, the truth eventually came out and he was sent off to a boarding school.
“Emmanuel had to leave for Paris,” said Brigitte, now 70. “I told myself that he would fall in love with someone his [own] age. It didn’t happen.”
The two kept in touch, but for a while Brigitte tried to keep some distance between them so as not to “wreck” the lives of her own children, who were close to Emmanuel’s age.
“That lasted 10 years, the time to put them on the rails. You can imagine what they were hearing,” she said. “But I didn’t want to miss out on my life.”
Brigitte and Emmanuel Macron arrive at the Coronation of King Charles III and Queen Camilla on May 6, 2023.Ben Stansall - WPA Pool/Getty
The couple was ultimately married in 2007, with Emmanuel, now 45, going on to win the French presidency in 2017.
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As she toldParis Match, their relationship has only strengthened since — thanks in large part to her admiration of her husband’s intellect.
“I have never seen such a memory … such an intellectual capacity. I had many brilliant pupils, and none had his capability," Brigitte said. “I have always admired him.”
source: people.com
