German politician Friedrich Merz on his rebellious teenage days: 'I ran into trouble with my parents quite early'

Published on February 28, 2025 at 12:02 PM by Sharleen McAleavy

German politician Friedrich Merz won the country's most recent election. Even if many didn’t expect it, he’s well acquainted with the art of celebrating. But he also knows a thing or two about disobedience, which led to him having to attend different schools as a teenager.

German politician Friedrich Merz opens up school days rebellious past

KEIR STARMER WHEN HE WAS YOUNG

Friedrich Merz is considered a conservative politician. His allegedly outdated views on women have been frequently criticised recently. As the strongest force in Germany's recent federal election, the CDU/CSU emerged, meaning the 69-year-old will likely soon become the new Chancellor. Those who remember him from earlier times might not have been able to see this coming.

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Friedrich Merz has got a rebellious past

Just before the federal elections, the man from Brilon, Germany, gave an unusual insight into his private life. The CDU politician revealed in a TV debate that he had tragically lost two siblings. He has also spoken more than once about his wild youth, for example, in a conversation with the Tagesspiegel, as reported by Bunte. He said:

I ran into trouble with my parents quite early, I had shoulder-length hair, I raced through the town on my motorbike, my regular spot with two friends was the chip shop in the town square just around the corner, and I started smoking and drinking beer.

But that wasn't all, as the trained lawyer actually repeated a year in the 10th grade. He told Bild recently:

I was particularly bad at mathematics, English, and French. And there was a fourth subject, which made a re-sit impossible.

This is hard to imagine today when hearing Friedrich Merz speak, but as a student, he was quite problematic. During his time at secondary school, there were 'more severe disciplinary disruptions', he once explained to Tagesspiegel. His disobedience went as far as him playing cards with his friends during lessons.

He seized his second chance

The father-of-three, who is now a grandfather of seven, was, as he himself said to Bild, saved by his mother, who suggested he change schools to one in a neighbouring town and start afresh. He seized this second chance and managed to complete his education without any more problems.

However, it seems that his final school results weren't the best, which closed off some courses he would have particularly liked to pursue: medicine, physics, and electrical engineering. He would have had to wait a long time for a university place. In a conversation with Bild, he explained that’s why he opted for law: