Angela Dorothea Merkel (before her marriage Kasner) is an influential European politician, head of the Federal Government of Germany, who became the only female chancellor in the country's history.

Under her leadership, Germany gained economic power, and she herself became a symbol of stability in Europe and a key figure in resolving the most difficult issues of European politics: from resolving the refugee situation to measures to unite the continent in the face of disagreements with the owner of the White House, Donald Trump.

The “European Iron Lady,” as she is called in the media, became chancellor for the fourth time and broke the record of being at the top of power of Margaret Thatcher, who served as prime minister for 11 years. Row political experts believe that in 2019 Merkel may leave her post and head the European Council, replacing Donald Tusk in this position.

Some analysts point to the weakening of its position in the political arena and express fears that Europe is in danger of entering an era of instability.

Childhood and youth

The future “defender of Western liberalism” was born on July 17, 1954 in West Germany. When Angela was still a baby, her family moved to the GDR after her father, Lutheran clergyman Horst Kasner, received a pastorate in Perleberg. He is a native of Berlin with Polish roots. The hometown of Angela's mother, a teacher of English and Latin, Gerlinda, née Jenz, was Danzig (now Gdansk in Poland).

In 1957, their family moved to the town of Templin, located 90 kilometers north of Berlin, where they added a son, Markus, and a younger daughter, Irena. My father was then assigned to run the local pastors' college.

In the period 1961-1973. the girl was a student at a secondary polytechnic school, and, as befits a priest’s daughter, she was a modest and quiet girl who pleased her family with her excellent academic performance. She especially excelled in studying the exact sciences and foreign languages, was a pioneer, a fan of The Beatles and an active member of the Union of Free German Youth.

After receiving her certificate, she became a student at the University of Leipzig, choosing the Faculty of Physics. At the university, the girl again demonstrated excellent academic performance. Then she successfully worked at the Central Institute of Physical Chemistry of the Academy of Sciences of the GDR and in 1986 became a Doctor of Natural Sciences.

Career Development

During the period of historical events and the fateful fall of the Berlin Wall for the Germans, the young scientist joined the ranks of the popular political force “Democratic Breakthrough,” which consisted mainly of church leaders. In 1990, she became an employee of the government of the GDR, and was present in a new capacity at many meetings that took place during the preparation for the annexation of the eastern lands. In August, Democratic Breakthrough became part of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU).

After the reunification of the state, she became a member of the Bundestag from the CDU. Her high potential was appreciated by Helmut Kohl. When forming a new government, he took her to the post of head of the Ministry of Women and Youth Affairs. She was soon elected deputy chairman of the CDU, and in 1993 the leader of the party in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern. A year later, Merkel became minister environment.

In 1998, when Kohl lost the elections, the politician became secretary general of the CDU. After the scandal with the financing of the ruling party, which compromised its patron, she did not come to his defense, but publicly criticized him, showing integrity, which was perceived ambiguously.

In 2000, Kohl's successor Wolfgang Schäble announced his resignation and she was elected to succeed him, becoming the first female leader of a German party. In 2005, she was elected chairman of the CDU/CSU bloc and nominated for the post of chancellor. Based on the results of the selection of people's representatives, she became the first representative of the “weaker sex” in this post in the history of the country. In addition, at 51, she is the youngest and first native of East Germany at the pinnacle of power.

Subsequently, she repeatedly demonstrated her remarkable political talent. Under her leadership, the German economy withstood a serious European crisis. In the period 2006-2008. Forbes magazine gave Angela Merkel a leading position in its ranking of the most powerful ladies in the world.

Angela Merkel speaks Russian

In foreign policy She tried to maintain smooth relations with all partners, but she considered cooperation with the United States a priority. She has repeatedly demonstrated her character when making important decisions, including issues of the Greek national debt, Britain's exit from the EU, and the problem of refugee integration. She has established a good working relationship with the Russian Federation, although she had previously been critical of Schröder’s “excessive” friendship with Putin.

In 2014, Merkel did not approve of the annexation of the Crimean Peninsula to the Russian Federation, supported Western sanctions against Russia, and became a member of the group for resolving the conflict in eastern Ukraine. Despite difficult relations with the Russian Federation, on the 70th anniversary of Victory in the Second World War, she came to Moscow to honor the memory of those who liberated the world from Nazism.

Interview with Angela Merkel

In the 2017 parliamentary elections, the CSU/CDU bloc, led by the Chancellor, won an undeniable victory, despite the fact that the politician’s authority was reduced due to the influx of refugees in 2015-2016. fell significantly.

Personal life

In 1977, still under the socialist regime, Angela married physics student Ulrich Merkel. But after 5 years of married life they separated. Subsequently, she called this marriage a mistake.

In her spare time, she enjoys gardening, is an excellent cook, is a passionate football fan and an honorary member of FC Energie Cottbus, and is very afraid of dogs due to their attack on her in 1995. In everyday life, their family is distinguished by modesty, having an apartment and a small Vacation home. The couple spends their holidays in Austria or Italy, renting rooms with an average cost of living.

Merkel now

In March 2018, the candidacy of the “Teutonic Margaret Thatcher” was supported by the majority of members of the Bundestag, and she was re-elected for the fourth time to the highest government post of head of the Federal Government. The President of the Russian Federation sent her a congratulatory telegram on this occasion.

During the summit of the G7 club of leading states held in Canada, she stated that she did not see conditions for the return of the Russian Federation to its membership. The leaders of the participating states excluded Russia from the G8 due to the “annexation of Crimea.”

Being a football fan, she announced on the ARD channel that she does not rule out the possibility of traveling to Russia for the World Cup, believing that such visits “could be useful.”

Germany, who took the post of Federal Chancellor of this country. Mrs. Merkel's accession to this high position took place in 2005. Before that, she was the leader of the Christian Social Union and Christian Democratic Union factions in the Bundestag for more than two years.

Mrs. Merkel made a successful political career back in the early 90s of the last century, joining the government of Helmut Kohl, where she headed the Ministry of Women and Youth Affairs. A little later, Merkel was responsible for environmental affairs in the government. Her responsibilities also include issues related to the safety of nuclear reactors.

Angela Merkel is a physicist by training. From the late 70s to the early 90s she was engaged in scientific work. Has a doctorate; in 1986 she successfully defended her dissertation on quantum physics.

The future Chancellor of Germany was born in 1954 into a Lutheran pastor who lived at that time in Hamburg, which belonged to West Germany. But Merkel (nee Kasner) spent her childhood in the GDR. During her school years, Angela was interested in mathematics, physics and the Russian language. The interests of the future head of the German government influenced the choice of educational institution - Angela studied physics for five years at the University of Leipzig.

In Leipzig, Angela met her future husband, Ulrich Merkel, with whom she lived for several years. Having completed her studies with honors, Merkel moved to Berlin, where she continued to work at the Institute of Physical Chemistry, established at one time by the Academy of Sciences of the GDR. By the end of the 80s, Angela Merkel entered politics. This was a time of political transformation in East Germany, which was striving for unification with Germany. Merkel actively supported new trends in the country's social life, which ended with the reunification of the two German states.

"Iron Lady" of Germany

For more than two decades spent in politics, Angela Merkel was able to occupy a high position in German public life and gain popularity among the German population. Having become Federal Chancellor, Merkel began to pursue a course of rapprochement with the United States in foreign policy.

The government's successful actions in the field of the country's economy allowed the German “Iron Lady” to be re-elected to the post of chancellor in 2009. And in December 2013, Merkel received the post of head of government for the third time.

The famous political leader of Germany still remains a mystery to journalists, trying to keep his private life intact. This causes a certain irritation in the press, which, however, does not prevent Merkel’s fans from admiring the personal and business qualities of the first female chancellor in German history.

He is leading in the elections to the Bundestag (parliament) with 33.8% of the vote, ahead of the Social Democratic Party of the SPD of Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier by more than 10 percentage points, according to the website of the German Federal Election Committee.

Based on the results of the parliamentary elections, it will become known who will head the government and take the post of chancellor.

Biography

Angela Dorothea Merkel (nee Kasner) was born on July 17, 1954 in Hamburg in the family of a pastor. At the Angela school, Dorothea was a member of the pioneer organization named after Ernst Thälmann and the Union of Free German Youth, and while still a schoolgirl she decided to study physics.

In 1973, Angela Kasner moved to Leipzig to study at the local university. It was during these student years that she met her future husband, student Ulrich Merkel, who also studied physics. On September 3, 1977, they got married.

In 1978, Merkel defended her thesis, and in 1981 she divorced her husband. At the Central Institute of Physical Chemistry at the Academy of Sciences of the German Democratic Republic in Berlin, where Merkel moved to work as a certified physicist, in 1984 she met her future second husband Joachim Sauer, whom she married in 1998. In 1986, the future chancellor defended her PhD thesis in physics.

After the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989, Merkel began working for the new Democratic Breakthrough Party, initially as temporary EVM administrator. Then she received the position of, in fact, the party's press secretary. After the unsuccessful elections to the People's Chamber for the Democratic Breakthrough in March 1990, the party's extraordinary congress decided by a majority vote to join the West German Christian Democratic Union of the CDU. Merkel was one of three delegates from the Democratic Breakthrough at the CDU unification congress in Hamburg.

After this, Merkel's political career began to develop rapidly. First, in 1990, she received the position of deputy government press secretary, and in the same year she became a member of the Bundestag. From 1991 to 1998, Merkel worked as deputy chairman of the CDU, at the same time she was Minister of Women and Youth Affairs, then Minister of the Environment, and from 1998 - general secretary CDU, and since 2000 - chairman of the party.

In the early elections to the Bundestag on September 18, 2005, the CDU/CSU bloc, led by its number one Angela Merkel, received 35.2% of the votes against 34.2% cast for the main competitor, the Social Democratic Party of the SPD of then Chancellor Gerhard Schröder. As a result, a coalition government of the CDU/CSU and the SPD was formed, and on November 22, Merkel was elected to the post of Federal Chancellor, becoming both the first female chancellor and the youngest chancellor (she was 51 years old at the time of her election).

Interesting Facts

The German press reports Interesting Facts about the chancellor. For breakfast, instead of the usual coffee for many, the most influential woman in the world drinks mint tea, the chancellor’s official car is an Audi, and his personal car is a Volkswagen Golf.

Merkel rarely wears dresses or skirts; mostly the chancellor's usual attire is a trouser suit. As a rule, these suits - black trousers combined with a blazer with three or four buttons - are made by the Hamburg designer Bettina Schönbach.

Merkel uses SMS to send messages to colleagues, and it was she who introduced this method of communication between the highest government officials in Germany. Except mobile phone, the chancellor's handbag must include a pencil with a notepad, a powder compact and glasses - Merkel is slightly myopic.

While working as Youth Minister, Merkel smoked a pack of cigarettes a day, but then quit. The Chancellor herself goes grocery shopping to a store located near her home, is afraid of dogs and does not wear perfume. On Merkel's desk - image Russian empress, German by origin, Catherine the Great.

Merkel is not a big fan of jewelry and does not wear rings, bracelets or earrings. His zodiac sign is Cancer, and he prefers the classics when it comes to music, especially the operas of Richard Wagner. Merkel speaks English and Russian among foreign languages.

For several years in a row, the Chancellor has topped the list of the hundred most influential women in the world according to Forbes magazine.

Angela Dorothea Merkel(German: Angela Dorothea Merkel) German statesman and politician. Federal Chancellor of Germany (since November 22, 2005), leader of the Christian Democratic Union party (since April 10, 2000).

Angela Merkel's childhood and education

Angela Dorothea Merkel (maiden name Kasner) was born on July 17, 1954 in Hamburg. Angela has Polish roots.

Father - Horst Kasner (1926−2011) changed his Polish surname Kazmierczak. He attended the Universities of Heidelberg and Hamburg, where he studied theology. Angela Merkel's grandfather, Ludwik Kazmierczak, served as a policeman in Poznań and fought in the First world war, participated in the Polish-Ukrainian and Soviet-Polish wars.

Mother - Gerlinda Kasner (née Yenc, born in 1928). She worked as a Latin teacher and English languages.

Angela Merkel's grandparents Margareta and Ludwig Kazmierczak (Photo: dw.com)

Angela is the eldest child in the family. Soon after her birth, her parents moved to the GDR. Horst Kasner began serving in the Lutheran Church of Berlin-Brandenburg in the city of Perleberg, and in 1957 they moved to the small town of Templin. Angela's father was assigned to run a college for pastors. His wife worked as a foreign language teacher. In addition to Angela Dorothea, the couple had two more children: Angela's brother Marcus (b. 1957) and sister Irena (b. 1964).

Angela as a child (Photo: bundeskanzlerin.de)

The Kasner family's children did not go to extended day school and spent time at home after school. Gerlinda was actively involved in the education and upbringing of her children.

Angela Merkel with her parents (Photo: bundeskanzlerin.de)

Angela Kasner entered the secondary polytechnic school in 1961. Angela Dorothea was a quiet, modest girl. But I studied well. She had a talent for languages ​​and exact sciences.

Like all children in the GDR, Angela was a pioneer, and then joined the Union of Free German Youth (SSNM). Angela Dorothea graduated from school in 1973 with honors and entered the physics department of the Karl Marx University Leipzig.

At school, Angela joined the ranks of the pioneers, which she left a year later. at will. In her youth, Angela Merkel was a member of the Free German Youth League, served as secretary of agitation and propaganda... and loved The Beatles (Photo: bundeskanzlerin.de)

Angela Kasner received her bachelor's degree in 1973 from Templin High School. She was especially strong in mathematics and knew Russian well (Photo: bundeskanzlerin.de)

In 1977, Angela Kasner married her fellow student Ulrich Merkel. After graduation, the couple moved to East Berlin. Angela Merkel worked as a research fellow at the Central Institute of Physical Chemistry at the Academy of Sciences in Berlin. The couple divorced in 1982 (Photo: bundeskanzlerin.de)

Merkel did well at university too. At the same time, she combined her studies with active work at SSNM. She was no longer a quiet, inconspicuous girl. While studying in 1974, at one of the youth exchange meetings with physics students from Moscow and Leningrad, she met her first husband, physics student from Vogtland Ulrich Merkel. The wedding took place in Templin Church on September 3, 1977.

While still studying at the university, Angela thought about political activity, but in her student years Merkel was not an oppositionist. While working at the Institute of Physical Chemistry, she held for some time the position of secretary of the committee of the Union of Free German Youth - the GDR Komsomol. She was responsible for agitation and propaganda.

Having successfully graduated from the University of Leipzig, Angela Merkel was sent to work at the Central Institute of Physical Chemistry of the Academy of Sciences of the GDR. In 1986 she defended doctoral dissertation.

Angela Merkel's political career

Angela Merkel started out as a politician in the late 80s of the last century. In the whirlwind of public life, Angela Merkel's face began to flash more and more often. The Berlin Wall collapsed. This event deeply excited the young physicist. At this historical moment for the Germans, Angel Dorothea was noticed by the then Chancellor of the Federal Republic of Germany, Helmut Kohl. The German leader needed fresh faces, representatives of the new federal states, who had not become boring to voters. Dr. Merkel's candidacy was consistent with the implementation of his plans.

Angela Merkel coped well with her new responsibilities. She agitated people, met with fishermen in the Baltic, talking to them right in beer bars. Merkel did not skimp on her promises, they believed her, they voted for her. “At least she knew how to listen,” her voters said, not really offended that the promises remained unfulfilled.

In the first general German elections in December 1990, Angela won from the electoral district of Stralsund-Rügen-Grimmen. On January 18, 1991, Angela Merkel, then 36 years old, was sworn in as Federal Minister for Women and Youth in the cabinet of Chancellor Helmut Kohl (Photo: bundeskanzlerin.de)

Angela Dorothea Merkel joined the Christian Democratic Union party, and after the reunification of Germany she became a member of the Bundestag from the CDU. Helmut Kohl immediately appreciated Angela's high potential. And he gave an order to a young party comrade: “You will lead the women!”

Chancellor Kohl invited Angela Merkel to his government and appointed her to the promising position of Minister of Women and Youth Affairs. She became his favorite old politician called her "girl". She soon took the position of secretary of the CDU. And journalists called Merkel “Kol’s girl.”

In 1994, Angela Merkel was appointed Federal Minister of the Environment. It was during her tenure that the first UN climate conference was held in Berlin in 1995. It marked the beginning of international initiatives to reduce CO2 emissions and the Confined Substances Act. (Photo: bundeskanzlerin.de)

However, in 1998, Kohl lost the election to Gerhard Schröder. And immediately after leaving, the ex-chancellor began to lose friends and associates. Moreover, when he was accused of allegedly accepting money for party needs from the oligarchs. And Dr. Merkel, once “devoted” to Kohl, hastened to dissociate herself from her former patron and led the movement to overthrow Helmut Kohl from his party post. In the same year, Angela Merkel was elected general secretary of the party.

Angala Merkel - Woman Chancellor

Merkel went to power with purely German tenacity. In 2002, she nominated herself for the post of Chancellor of Germany, but then abandoned the competition in favor of the leader of the Christian Socialist Union (CSU), Edmund Stoiber. However, already in 2005 she was nominated as a candidate for the post of Chancellor of Germany from the opposition.

On September 20 of the same year, at the first meeting of the new CDU/CSU faction, Angela Dorothea Merkel was elected its chairman. And on November 22, 2005, Merkel was preferred by 397 out of 611 votes of deputies of the 16th Bundestag and she became the first female Federal Chancellor and at the same time the youngest (at the age of 51) Federal Chancellor in the entire history of Germany with a natural science education.

After six weeks of negotiations, the CDU, CSU and SPD agreed to create a Grand Coalition led by Angela Merkel. On November 22, 2005, Angela Merkel was elected Federal Chancellor in the Bundestag, receiving 397 out of 614 votes. (Photo: bundeskanzlerin.de)

Angela Merkel remains in the top position to this day. Over the years, she has proven herself to be a seasoned and skillful leader. Angela Merkel managed to maintain order in the state to a greater extent. Germany is an economic leader within the EU. After unification, the country began to increasingly dominate in the political aspect. Chancellor Merkel, through her policies, has increased Germany's authority in Europe. Her country has repeatedly provided assistance to less developed European countries, including financial assistance.

However, for some time now, due to the increase in terrorist attacks, Chancellor Merkel began to doubt the correctness of her chosen migration policy. Back in 2010, speaking to young members of the CDU in Potsdam, Angela Merkel openly admitted that the policy of multiculturalism had failed completely in Germany. She believed that not only Europeans, but also immigrants who arrived in Europe “should make more efforts to integrate into German society, in particular by studying German».

Angela Merkel, 2010 (Photo: DPA/TASS)

In turn, the chancellor's press secretary, Steffen Seibert, said that Merkel intends to remain as German chancellor until the end of her term.

Personal life Angela Merkel

Merkel's married life was unsuccessful. They lived with her husband Ulrich Merkel for 5 years; in 1982, Angela left him. But she kept his last name (Merklich, which means “noticeable”).

Angela Merkel's second husband (the relationship was formalized in 1998) is chemist Joachim Sauer. Angela Merkel has no children in either her first or second marriage.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel with her husband Joachim Sauer. (Photo: Zuma/TASS)

Scandals with Angela Merkel

In 2013, a nude photo of Angela Merkel in her youth appeared online. However, it has not yet been officially confirmed that they depict Angela Dorothea Merkel. Although there is nothing surprising in this - there were many young people in the ranks of the nudist movement of the 60s. And these photos even added some spice to the person of Angela Merkel, and her rating as a politician only increased. After all, nudism is very popular in Germany.

Angela Merkel's official account

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Biography, life story of Angela Merkel

Angela Dorothea Merkel is a German politician and statesman.

Childhood, family

Angela was born on July 17, 1954 in Hamburg (Germany). Father's name is Horst Kasner, mother's name is Gerlinda Kasner. Gerlinda was a teacher of English and Latin. Pope Angela was a believer; he was actively involved in the study of theology. When the family moved to Perleberg (and this happened just a few weeks after Angela’s birth), Horst took up the position of pastor in the local Lutheran church. In 1957 the Kasners moved to Templin. In the same year, a son, Marcus, was born into the family. In 1964, Gerlinde and Horst had another child - a girl, Irena.

In 1961, Angela went to Templin Polytechnic School. The girl amazed her teachers with her thirst for knowledge; she was especially good at subjects such as mathematics and the Russian language. While studying at school, Angela was a member of the Ernst Thälmann Pioneer Organization and the Union of Free German Youth. In 1973, Angela successfully graduated from school, passing all final exams with flying colors.

Education

After school, Angela left Templin and entered the Karl Marx University Leipzig to study physics. The girl studied well and diligently, which, however, did not cause her much trouble - she always had a predisposition to science. In June 1978, Angela defended her thesis on the topic “The influence of spatial correlation on the rate of bimolecular elementary reactions in a dense medium,” receiving an “excellent” rating from the commission. A little later, in the winter of 1986, Angela also successfully defended her dissertation work, thanks to which she received the title of Doctor of Natural Sciences.

Career

After university, Angela worked for some time at the Central Institute of Physical Chemistry at the Academy of Sciences of the GDR, first in the department of theoretical chemistry, and a little later in the department of analytical chemistry. Angela did not forget about public works - she actively participated in political life, served as secretary for propaganda and agitation in the League of Free German Youth.

CONTINUED BELOW

In 1989, Angela joined the Democratic Renewal Party. At the same time, she was appointed to the post of government press secretary.

In December 1989, Angela Merkel started thinking about a serious political career. Having conducted a good election campaign, she managed to become a deputy of the German Bundestag. A little later she became Minister of Women and Youth Affairs.

In 1991, Angela became vice-chairman of the Christian Democratic Union. In 1994, she took the post of Minister of Environmental Protection.

In 1998, the Christian Democratic Union came under public attack. Helmut Kohl, the union's chairman, was accused of accepting illegal external donations into the organization's account. Angela immediately renounced her allegiance to Helmut and urgently demanded a change of leadership from the party activists.

In 2003, Angela openly supported the invasion American soldiers to Iraq.

In 2004, Angela successfully promoted Horast Köhler to the presidency of Germany, organizing a brilliant election campaign for him.

In 2005, the Christian Democratic Union elected Angela as a candidate for the post of Federal Chancellor of Germany. On November 22 of the same year, an official document was signed confirming the new appointment of Angela Merkel. She became the first woman in German history to hold this post.

Views and beliefs

From the very beginning political career Angela Merkel said she advocates rapprochement between Germany and the United States. Angela has always been against too strong a friendship with Russian Federation and even intended to tighten relations with the huge country, however, after becoming chancellor, she did nothing for this.

Angela Merkel has always been against Turkey's entry into European Union, believing that this will not bring any positive changes to the world political situation.

As soon as she became chancellor, Angela Merkel stated that her main goal was to create new jobs for the population. Despite this, in the very first years of her tenure there were mass layoffs from the German branches of such well-known companies as Siemens and Nokia.

Personal life

Angela married her first time in 1977 to her fellow student Ulrich Merkel. The marriage did not last long - already in 1982 the couple officially divorced.

In 1984, Angela began dating Joachim Sauer, a physicist and professor at the Humboldt University of Berlin. In December 1998, the lovers got married.