Angela Dorothea Merkel, born on 17 July 1954 in Hamburg, is a German retired politician who served as Chancellor of Germany from 2005 to 2021. She is notable for being the first woman to hold this office, the only former East German chancellor, and the first chancellor born after World War II. Merkel's family moved to East Germany shortly after her birth. She was a member of the East German Communist Youth and earned a doctorate in quantum chemistry in 1986, working as a research scientist until 1989. Following the Revolutions of 1989, she entered politics, serving briefly as deputy spokeswoman for the first democratically elected government of East Germany under Lothar de Maizière. After German reunification in 1990, she was elected to the Bundestag for Mecklenburg-Vorpommern.Merkel became a protégé of Chancellor Helmut Kohl, who appointed her as Minister for Women and Youth in 1991. In 1994, she was promoted to Minister for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety. After the CDU's defeat in the 1998 federal election, she was elected general secretary of the party and became its first female leader in 2000. Merkel served as Leader of the Opposition from 2002 until her election as Chancellor in 2005, following a closely contested federal election that resulted in a grand coalition with the SPD.During her chancellorship, Merkel led Germany through significant events, including the 2008 financial crisis and the Eurozone crisis. She emphasized international cooperation, particularly within the EU and NATO, and played a key role in negotiating the Treaty of Lisbon. Her government implemented the Energiewende program, promoting renewable energy and phasing out nuclear power. Merkel's foreign policy included initiating the construction of the Nord Stream 2 pipeline, despite international criticism, and managing the European migrant crisis in 2015, which saw a significant influx of asylum seekers into Germany.Merkel's leadership style was characterized by pragmatism and consensus-building. She faced challenges such as the 2014 Russian annexation of Crimea and the COVID-19 pandemic, which required her government to adapt its policies. In 2018, she announced her decision not to seek re-election as CDU leader and did not run for a fifth term in the 2021 federal election. Merkel's tenure ended on 8 December 2021, when Olaf Scholz was sworn in as her successor. Throughout her career, Merkel's policies and decisions have been subject to scrutiny, particularly regarding her approach to Russia and immigration.

Shop

Angela Merkel