How Emmanuel Macron met Brigitte and the scandals of France's first couple
French President Emmanuel Macron first met Brigitte Auzière in 1993 at La Providence, a Catholic high school in Amiens. He was 15 years old, the legal age of consent in France, and she was his 39-year-old literature and drama teacher. Brigitte was also married and a mother of three, including one daughter who was in Macron's class.
The relationship began quietly but drew attention the following summer, when Brigitte's family reportedly caught the two sunbathing at her parents' home. The revelation led to outrage within the community. According to Maëlle Brun's biography
Brigitte Macron: An Unfettered Woman
, locals sent anonymous letters to the Auzière family's chocolate business and spat on Brigitte's front door. Friends and neighbors turned against her.
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Brigitte Macron net worth: From Chocolate Heiress to France's First Lady
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Despite the backlash, Macron maintained his attachment. 'We spoke about everything. And I discovered we had always known one another,' he would later reflect in interviews. Brigitte, then still married to banker André-Louis Auzière, struggled privately, fearing the young Macron would eventually move on. 'My head was in a mess,' she told
Paris Match
. 'I told myself that he would fall in love with someone his age. It didn't happen.'
A decade-long affair ends in marriage
The scandal grew as Macron left Amiens for a prestigious high school in Paris, yet the pair remained in contact. Every Friday, he would reportedly board a train after classes to see Brigitte. Over the years, her marriage deteriorated. The divorce was finalized nearly a decade after their affair began.
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In 2007, Emmanuel and Brigitte were married in Le Touquet, the beach town where her family kept a weekend home. Macron was 29. Brigitte was 54. Her three children attended the wedding, along with Macron's parents.
At the wedding, Macron acknowledged the difficulties his new family had faced. 'Each and every one of you is a witness to these last 13 years,' he said. 'And you have accepted us.'
Also read:
Who is Brigitte Macron and why her relationship with French President a talking point? Explained
After their marriage, Brigitte left her teaching job to support Macron's growing political career. When he became finance minister in 2014, she acted as his closest advisor. She remained prominent as he campaigned for president, often appearing at his side.
Rumors, media scrutiny, and political ascent
The couple's age gap and origin story continued to attract media coverage and public speculation. Some critics questioned the authenticity of their relationship, while others pushed unfounded rumors, including claims Macron was covering up a homosexual relationship. The president denied those rumors, but biographer Brun notes Brigitte was privately shaken.
Despite this, the couple's image as a unified political team solidified. In 2017, Macron won the presidency at age 39, the youngest in French history, cementing Brigitte's role as an unconventional First Lady.
She later addressed the scrutiny in an interview with
Elle France
: 'We have breakfast together, me with my wrinkles, him with his youth, but it's like that.'
Viral Vietnam video renews public fascination
In May 2025, renewed interest in the couple's relationship surfaced after a video showed Brigitte Macron appearing to shove her husband's face as they arrived in Vietnam. Macron dismissed the moment as playful, saying they were 'joking,' and urged observers to 'calm down.'
Also read:
Emmanuel Macron tries to keep cool but this one reaction exposed his anger over the viral face shove
But with France also facing economic warnings and ongoing political uncertainty, including a December government collapse and recent drug rumor denial from the Elysée Palace, the resurfacing of their decades-old scandal has renewed public fascination with the origins of Macron's personal life, and its lasting influence on his political identity.
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