Angela Merkel: Bio And Career Highlights

July 17, 1954

Hamburg, Germany

72 Years Old

Cancer

Angela Dorothea Merkel is a German politician and stateswoman, globally recognized for her pragmatic leadership style. Her steady hand guided Germany and the European Union through numerous complex challenges.


She first gained widespread attention when appointed Minister for Women and Youth in 1991 under Chancellor Helmut Kohl. This early role marked her rapid ascent, establishing her as a significant figure in German politics.

Angela Dorothea Kasner was born in Hamburg, West Germany, but her family soon moved to East Germany when her Lutheran pastor father accepted a new pastorate. She grew up in Templin with her two younger siblings, Marcus and Irene.


Merkel excelled in academics, particularly in science and Russian, while attending school in Templin. She later pursued physics at Karl Marx University, Leipzig, where she earned a diploma, followed by a doctorate in quantum chemistry from the German Academy of Sciences in East Berlin.

Angela Merkel has been married twice, first to Ulrich Merkel, a fellow physics student she met at university. She kept his surname after their divorce in 1982.


Merkel is currently married to Joachim Sauer, a quantum chemist and professor, with their relationship remaining largely private over the decades. She has no children from either marriage.

Angela Merkel became Germany's first female chancellor in 2005, serving four terms for a total of sixteen years, becoming the second longest-serving chancellor in German history. She navigated the country through the eurozone debt crisis, the migrant crisis of the 2010s, and the COVID-19 pandemic.


Merkel assumed leadership of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) in 2000, shaping its direction for nearly two decades. Her tenure significantly influenced the European Union, where she became a pivotal figure in international cooperation and policy development.

“Freedom is not a given; it is something one has to work for.”