A video of French First Lady Brigitte Macron slapping her husband, President Emmanuel Macron, went viral on social media platform X on Monday, triggering a wave of renewed speculation about their relationship. Many users joked that “Emmanuel Macron got slapped by his husband” – a reference to long-running rumors about the couple’s relationship.
The clip rekindled old tabloid claims: that Brigitte is a transgender woman, that Macron is a homosexual and that their marriage is more of a facade than a romance. Their relationship has long been the subject of gossip but it began with a story that drew raised eyebrows even in more private circles.
Video showing French First Lady Brigitte Macron allegedly slapping her husband
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French President President Emmanuel Macron and First Lady Brigitte Macron
(Photo: Marc Piasecki/Getty Images)
A teenage Macron falls in love with his teacher
Emmanuel Macron was 15 when he first met Brigitte Trogneux, who was 25 years older, married and a mother of three. She was his teacher at a private Catholic school in northern France. Their romantic relationship began almost immediately, according to later interviews.
Macron’s parents — Jean-Michel Macron, a neurology professor and Francoise Macron-Nogues, a physician — strongly opposed the relationship and tried to intervene. His father even pleaded with Brigitte to stay away from his son until he turned 18. “I can’t promise you anything,” she replied.
“I didn’t think the affair would last,” Brigitte admitted in a 2016 French documentary. “I thought he’d get bored of me but I was gradually taken in by this child’s intelligence.”
At age 16, Macron was sent to Paris by his parents to complete his studies. But even then, he vowed to marry Brigitte — then in her early 40s. “We talked for hours on the phone,” she recalled. “In the end, he managed to overcome all my objections with patience and determination.”
The timeline of when their relationship became serious remains vague, but in 2007 they married — as Macron had promised. “No one will ever know when our story became a love story. That’s our secret,” Brigitte said.
“We couldn’t believe it was happening,” Macron’s mother was quoted saying in the biography “Emmanuel Macron: A Perfect Young Man” by journalist Anne Fulda. “We couldn’t just say, ‘how wonderful,’ about their affair.”
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According to the book, she once confronted Brigitte and told her, “You’ve had your life but he’ll never have children with you.” The couple indeed has no children together. Eventually, Macron’s parents accepted the relationship. His mother has since described Brigitte as “a wonderful woman.”
An age gap under the spotlight
The 25-year age gap between Brigitte, born in 1953, and Emmanuel, born in 1977, raised eyebrows from the start. Macron once said, “If the roles were reversed, no one would think it’s strange. People have a hard time accepting something real and unique.”
Early in their relationship, the couple kept a low profile. But once Macron launched his presidential campaign, their story became part of his public image. “Macron wanted to show that if he could win over a woman 25 years older than him, a mother of three, despite ridicule and opposition — he could also win over France,” Fulda told the BBC.
A relationship clouded by rumors
Their marriage has been dogged by rumors for years. In 2018, Macron used a staff meeting to jokingly but firmly deny claims that he had a romantic relationship with his former bodyguard, Alexandre Benalla. “He was never my lover,” the president said.
Gossip websites have also claimed that Macron was photographed in a Paris forest with former Radio France head Mathieu Gallet. The alleged photos never surfaced but Macron addressed the rumors: “To say a man can’t be with an older woman without assuming he’s gay or a secret gigolo — that’s misogynistic and homophobic. If I were gay, I’d say so and live my life openly.”
Brigitte added, “Sure, it’s easier when you're the same age. But that’s not our situation.” Commentators have noted that the couple’s tendency to respond to rumors may be one reason they persist.
Transphobic conspiracy theories and legal battles
In 2022, during Macron’s re-election campaign, far-right groups began spreading transphobic conspiracy theories that Brigitte Macron was a transgender woman. Anti-vaccine activists and other fringe groups amplified the claims, accusing her of pedophilia and alleging that she was actually her brother Jean-Michel, who had supposedly transitioned.
In December 2024, French prosecutors announced that four people would stand trial for online harassment after repeatedly posting those accusations. A court hearing is expected in July.
In another case last September, a French court ordered two women to pay Brigitte €8,000 (about $8,600) in damages for claiming she was transgender — a ruling that fueled further conspiracy theories. “This isn’t a victory — it’s simply the law doing its job,” her lawyer said.
In March 2024, Brigitte’s daughter, Tiphaine Auzière, publicly defended her mother, saying: “I’m worried about society when I hear rumors that my mother was once a man.”