Friedrich Merz, born 11 November 1955 in Brilon, North Rhine-Westphalia, became the 10th Chancellor of the Federal Republic of Germany on 6 May 2025 following the CDU/CSU's victory in the February 2025 elections. Before politics, he was a corporate lawyer and supervisory-board chairman of BlackRock Germany.
His Parents
Father: Joachim Bernhard Merz (1924 – 2018) — a judge and later notary in Brilon.
Mother: Trude Merz née Sauvigny — homemaker.
His Siblings
Friedrich has three siblings. The family is from a Sauerland Catholic background.
His Wife: Charlotte Merz
Charlotte Merz, née Gass, born 1959, is a German judge in Arnsberg. They have been married since the late 1980s.
Their Children
The couple have three children — Susanne, Carola, and Constantin (b. ~1995). The children have stayed largely out of public view.
The Merz Family Tree at a Glance
Family Origins: Sauerland Catholic; Brilon, North Rhine-Westphalia.
Parents: Joachim Bernhard Merz (1924–2018, judge/notary); Trude Merz née Sauvigny (homemaker).
Wife: Charlotte Merz née Gass (b. ~1959, judge in Arnsberg).
Children: Susanne; Carola; Constantin.
Friedrich Merz:
- Born 11 November 1955, Brilon
- St-Ursula-Gymnasium, Arnsberg; University of Bonn, University of Marburg (Law, 1985)
- Judge in Saarbrücken (1986–1988); corporate lawyer (Mayer Brown)
- MEP (1989–1994)
- Bundestag MP (1994–2009; 2021–present)
- CDU/CSU parliamentary group leader (2000–2002, in opposition to Merkel)
- Chairman of supervisory board, BlackRock Germany (2016–2020)
- CDU leader from January 2022
- 10th Chancellor of the Federal Republic of Germany from 6 May 2025
What the Merz Family Story Teaches Us
A judge-and-notary father. A homemaker mother. A judge wife. Three children quietly raised in the Sauerland. From one Catholic provincial-German household came a 70-year-old Chancellor whose political career has had two distinct chapters — early Merkel-era opposition and late-life ascent to the top job.
For every family — large or small, famous or otherwise — the Merz story carries the same lesson. Sometimes careers have very long second acts. Friedrich Merz spent 12 years out of the Bundestag before returning. The interruption is part of the family record, not a gap in it. Write down all the chapters of each family member's life.
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