- 1 year ago
Meet Emmanuel Macron. The centrist French President who rose to power as right-wing movements swept Europe, while making headlines for his unconventional romance with Brigitte Macron. Discover how Macron’s bold politics and fearless campaigning redefined French leadership in the age of populism.
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00:00What drives a young man from provincial France to challenge decades of political tradition
00:10and win? Today we unravel the life of Emmanuel Macron, France's youngest president.
00:20Our story begins from 21st of December 1977 in the picturesque city of Amiens.
00:27Emmanuel Jean-Michel Frédéric Macron was born as the eldest of three siblings.
00:32His parents were medical professionals, his father a university professor of neurology, his mother a physician.
00:39Both were politically liberal, valuing education and intellectual curiosity.
00:45I mean, he has been, when he was young, he was a gifted student.
00:50And he studied in most of the elite, you know, places in France, which most of the politicians are in, you know, in France.
01:02He was, you know, he studied in Sciences Po, he was also, you know, part of all other major écoles.
01:09Young Macron found solace in music, devoting hours to the piano.
01:14But, adolescence brought more than books and music.
01:18At La Providence, his Jesuit private school, Macron's path collided with Bridget Ozier, his literature and drama teacher.
01:27A woman over two decades his age and married with three children.
01:32Bridget married Emmanuel Macron in October 2007.
01:36The couple does not have any children together, only Bridget's three children from previous marriage.
01:43Sebastian, Laurence and Tiffany.
01:45Laurence, Bridget's daughter was actually in the same class as Emmanuel Macron at school.
01:51Which initially led Macron's parents to mistakenly believe that their son was dating Laurence rather than Bridget.
01:58This unique family dynamic has drawn considerable public and media attention.
02:03To many, their bond was unorthodox and sparked whispers.
02:08For Macron, it was destiny.
02:15In efforts to separate him from Bridget, his parents sent him to Paris' Lycée Henry IV school.
02:21Here, Emmanuel pursued studies in philosophy at the University of Paris Nanterre à la Défense.
02:27Where he obtained a master's level degree, writing his thesis on Machiavelli and Hegel.
02:33He then entered the prestigious school École Nationale d'Administration, or ENA, in 2002.
02:40A breeding ground for future French leaders.
02:44After ENA, Macron debuted in public service as an inspector for the French Ministry of Economics and Finance.
02:55In 2007, he caught the eye of President Nicolas Sarkozy.
02:59And he joined the Attali Commission on Economic Growth.
03:02Here, he helped draft ambitious recommendations to modernize and liberate the French economy.
03:09But Macron craved broader horizons.
03:12He moved to Rothschild & Co., the French branch of the famous investment bank.
03:17His most high-profile achievement was orchestrating Nestlé's $12 billion acquisition of Pfizer's baby food division in 2012.
03:27A deal that established his reputation as a rainmaker in investment banking and reportedly earned him a personal fortune.
03:36Macron gained recognition not only for his deal-making skills, but also for his networking, charm and ability to navigate high-level negotiations.
03:46Which later paved the way for his entry into top-level politics.
03:51The private sector could not contain Macron's ambition.
03:57Drawn to public service, in 2012, he joined President Francois Orlin's inner circle as Deputy Chief of Staff and Economic Advisor.
04:07But he rose swiftly to become Minister for the economy.
04:10There, he tackled reform aimed at liberalizing the French economy.
04:15Sometimes controversially.
04:17Labour laws relaxed and new opportunities opened.
04:20He did well in most of the subject and ultimately, I mean, he was a investment banker.
04:26And then that's the place where actually he made his mark.
04:30But then maybe he was not just satisfied with that job and he came and joined the government.
04:37As a kind of, you know, advisor and within the ministry.
04:43And then later on, he became also, you know, the Chief of Office staff and economic advisor to President Orland.
04:54And within that, he worked for quite some time before he actually started his own political movement.
05:00So he was a very bright student and did many things in private sector within the government.
05:10And ultimately, of course, he perhaps had the ambition to be at the top within France, which ultimately he was able to achieve.
05:18Yes.
05:22Then came the twist.
05:24In 2016, Macron launched En Marche, a French word meaning forward, a centrist pro-European political party.
05:33Its promise, neither right nor left, but a new French dynamism.
05:38It became a political revolution for France.
05:41Well, I think, you know, what he realized that, you know, within, as he also worked with President Orland,
05:49he realized that, you know, most of the time, in fact, you know, whether he was working with President Orland
05:56and later on also in all those years now when he has been president, I think his main agenda has been basically economic reforms in one way or another.
06:07And that was also perhaps the reason actually finally he left, you know, that socialist group in a sense.
06:14I mean, you know, he was an advisor with them.
06:17He thought that, you know, within the traditional political setup, you know, he may not be able to push the kind of reforms for which are required for the French economy.
06:29And the traditional political parties are not the right vehicle because people have kind of fed up from these, you know, both kind of, of course, there are many more than two.
06:40But, you know, broadly what you have, you know, the socialist and other groupings and then you have all the Republicans and, you know, all the Golan's.
06:48So, he thought it would be the right time perhaps to launch some new movement, which he did and he was very, very successful.
06:55Many dismissed him, some mocked his youth.
06:59But a year later in 2017, turning predictions upside down, Macron defeated far-right veteran Marine Le Pen, becoming at 39 the youngest president in French history.
07:12And that was also the time you can see the right wing was also making major gains in France and also all across Europe.
07:21And he provided in that sense some kind of a promise of new France where he would be able to really, you know, improve the economic conditions and bring the glory back to France.
07:36And, you know, and this was also the time when, you know, the Britain was moving out from the European Union.
07:43And then, you know, the de facto leader of the European Union, Angela Merkel in Germany, she was also going towards her own retirement.
07:53So, you know, it was not just only within France, he actually heroes, he was also trying to get, in fact, to some extent, he was successful to getting even the leadership within the European Union.
08:05So, his agenda, his ambitions were bigger.
08:12He thought that through that, you know, French, you know, because unless you are able to lead Europe also, only as a France, you know, you will not be able to mark, you know, make your mark internationally.
08:26So, you know, he would like to use the strength of Europe, European Union, and of course, French identity.
08:34And then within France, you establish your leadership, you try to lead within the European Union, working closely with the Germans.
08:42And then through that, you also try to be a very important pole within the, you know, the global economy and the global system, which he realized that, you know, today you have the United States and China.
08:54And Europe really has to also become very, very important, but it cannot become very important unless you really change the economic and political conditions within France and also in Europe.
09:07One year into his presidency, Macron's push to liberalize labor laws and increased fuel taxes sparked the protests called Yellow Vests.
09:20In 2018-19, protests swept the nation, voicing anger over rising living costs and perceptions of elitism.
09:28Macron initiated a nationwide great debate, traveling across France to meet citizens and hear grievances directly.
09:37Ultimately, he rolled back the proposed fuel tax increase.
09:40Then came another challenge.
09:43Proposed changes to France's pension system, including raising the retirement age, incited massive protest and transport strikes in 2019-20.
09:53Macron temporarily paused the reforms during COVID-19, but went back to the bill post-pandemic.
10:00A series of protests began in France on 19 January 2023, with a demonstration of over one million people nationwide.
10:08Protesters burned effigies of Macron.
10:12Even after all that, in April 2023, Macron signed his controversial pension reform into law.
10:18During COVID, anti-vaccine demonstrators chanted through the streets of Paris, in protest to new restrictions announced by Macron.
10:27Macron stood firm on the scientific guidance behind his decisions.
10:31In 2020, a teacher, Samuel Paty, who had shown caricatures of Prophet Muhammad during a class debate, was murdered.
10:39Macron condemned the murder as a typical Islamist terrorist attack and that he was killed for teaching children freedom of speech.
10:48He also defended publication of religious cartoons and French secularism after the Charlie Hebdo controversy, when offices of the satirical magazine were targeted after it published cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad.
11:01Macron, with his defiance, angered some Muslim-majority countries.
11:05I think he is facing difficulties, both within France and also within Europe.
11:14Now, you know, things have, I mean, you know, you know, a few years back he was talking about, you know, the NATO, which is a brain dead.
11:24And suddenly after the Ukraine war, things have changed very, very fundamentally.
11:28Because, you know, he was trying to distance France and Europe away from United States.
11:33But now after the Ukraine war, I mean, the Europeans have realized that unless Americans are there, they will not be able to, you know, resolve this issue on their own.
11:42And not only that, now it's, you know, the NATO is French, I mean, brain dead.
11:47But this is, in fact, you know, more countries, you know, Sweden, Finland, they have already joined NATO.
11:52So things have changed differently internationally.
11:55Relations between French President Emmanuel Macron and Africa have also grown contentious, particularly in former colonies where France's military presence and perceived neo-colonial attitudes provoke distrust.
12:09Macron sought dialogue and acknowledged past colonial wrongs.
12:13Overall, basically, there is a decline of the West.
12:16And that's quite apparent.
12:19Now, the Africa is not Africa of yesterday's.
12:23Now, many of the African economies, they are doing very well.
12:27They are also politically asserting themselves.
12:30So they do not like to be treated the way they used to be treated earlier.
12:36And France, you know, has its own legacy, its own bad memories in many of, you know, African countries.
12:44So I think the French, they are continued, they are trying to assert their, you know, dominance in some of those countries.
12:53But I think those things are of the past.
12:56So things are different.
12:57His open support for recognizing Palestine also sparked debate.
13:02In June 2021, during an official visit in southeastern France, President Emmanuel Macron was unexpectedly slapped in the face by a man in the crowd.
13:12In another video that went viral in May 2025, Macron was seen being shoved lightly on the face by his wife, as they disembarked from a plane in Hanoi in Vietnam.
13:23The unexpected moment caused a social media frenzy, with many interpreting the gesture as tense or hostile.
13:30However, Macron and his team quickly dismissed it as playful teasing and a private moment of intimacy between the couple.
13:38Another controversy involved American commentator Candace Owens, who claimed Brigid Macron was a man and accused her of grooming Emmanuel.
13:47Macron and his wife responded with a lawsuit for defamation, defending their dignity and privacy fiercely.
13:54On the world stage, Macron has not shied away from making bold moves, recognizing Palestine, recalibrating West African ties and insisting on mutual respect.
14:08These stance drew both praise and protest, adding to his reputation as a disruptor among European heads of state.
14:16If there is one cause Macron has made synonymous with his presidency, it's the idea of a stronger, more independent Europe.
14:24And in all the other ideas of strategic autonomy, which has been there within French politics, and he was not the first one.
14:34But he again brought those things and he linked that strategic autonomy of France with also the European sovereignty.
14:42Because he thought, you know, linking French autonomy, bring it back to Europe.
14:47And then again, he linked that European sovereignty with, you know, mainly with the economic conditions.
14:54And, you know, the European project was basically and still the project is basically about free market economy.
15:01But the idea about the European sovereignty, which he talked with, in fact, today about President Trump has been talking the similar kind of thing.
15:08You know, some kind of protectionism, some kind of industrial policy, bringing competitiveness back to the European economy and the French economy.
15:17And without that, he feels that the autonomy of Europe and France will not be able to realise.
15:26And that's what he has been doing it for since he has entered this particular politics within France and also within Europe.
15:33A major takeaway from his presidency is the successful Franco-German push for a historic joint EU recovery fund,
15:42raising 800 billion euros during the COVID-19 pandemic, which marked a Hamiltonian moment for Europe by creating common debt and financial unity never seen before.
15:54Admired, criticised, dissected, Emmanuel Macron remains unafraid to challenge orthodoxy in life and in office.
16:03Within Europe also, for some time he was trying to lead Europe, but now you also have, you know, new, you know, the German leader and things are difficult within the European economy and also in the security system and domestic politics.
16:22Because within domestic politics, he's, yes, he continued to be president.
16:27And in fact, many people already start calling him as kind of a lame duck president because now he has also lost majority, his political group has also lost majority within French parliament.
16:39But of course, I mean, French president is still very, very powerful, particularly on foreign policy and all those issues.
16:46And, you know, he's very, you know, he was the youngest, you know, president within France and the fifth Republic.
16:53And since Napoleon actually has been the youngest one.
16:57So, so he, I mean, you know, within the French politics, he, I mean, he's not going to go away from French politics, even after two terms, because, you know, within the French system that you can come back, you know, you may not be consecutively three times, but you can come back later.
17:13And, you know, and I think he's still keeping that options also open because age is inside, because even by 2032 elections, he'll still be very young, even by any political standard.
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