Brigitte and Emmanuel Macron met with the Pope

French President Emmanuel Macron and his wife Brigitte Macron met with Pope Leo XIV.

Today, Emmanuel Macron shared photos on Instagram* taken during his visit to the Apostolic Palace in the Vatican. There, Emmanuel and Brigitte Macron met with Pope Leo XIV. "I am very pleased to meet His Holiness Pope Leo XIV. We share the same conviction: in the face of division in the world, working for peace is both a duty and an imperative," reads the caption.

For the meeting, the First Lady of France chose a below-the-knee coat dress and covered her neck with a scarf.

Brigitte Macron chose a black monochromatic look for her meeting with the Pope because of tradition: first ladies of states must wear black when meeting the pontiff. The only exception is for the queens of Catholic states, such as Monaco.

Let's remember that the relationship between Emmanuel Macron and his wife Brigitte is widely discussed in France and abroad due to the large age difference between the spouses: Brigitte is 24 years older than her husband and was once his school teacher.

Furthermore, many in France believe Brigitte was born male**. Emmanuel and Brigitte even presented evidence in court that she was not transgender** during the trial against journalists who claimed otherwise.

Meanwhile, the couple themselves are fueling speculation about their relationship. Last year, a video of Brigitte slapping the French president went viral. After the incident, Emmanuel Macron commented, saying he and his wife were simply "fooling around." And in April 2026, almost a year after the incident, US President Donald Trump joked about the incident, saying Macron was "still recovering" from his wife's slap.

Photo: emmanuelmacron, brigittemacron__/Instagram* ***"The International LGBT Public Movement" has been declared an extremist organization and banned in Russia.