Portrait
Guido Westerwelle
Born
27 December 1961Bad Honnef, Germany
Died
18 March 2016Cologne, Germany · aged 54
Politician, former Foreign Minister of GermanyGermany65th birthday10th anniversary of death

Guido Westerwelle

A German liberal politician who became the country’s first openly gay foreign minister.

Guido Westerwelle was born in Bad Honnef in 1961. He studied law and built his political career in the Free Democratic Party, becoming general secretary in 1994 and chairman in 2001. Energetic and combative, he sought attention through campaigns including his “Guidomobil” tour in 2002.

Westerwelle’s sexuality was known privately before he appeared with his partner Michael Mronz at Angela Merkel’s fiftieth birthday celebration in 2004. The appearance made their relationship publicly visible without a formal coming-out announcement. They entered a civil partnership in 2010.

After the FDP’s strong election result in 2009, Westerwelle became foreign minister and vice-chancellor, the first openly gay person in either office. He remained vice-chancellor until 2011 and foreign minister until 2013, representing Germany abroad while his private life challenged expectations of who could hold such posts.

Diagnosed with leukaemia in 2014, he later wrote about treatment and the disruption it brought to his life. Westerwelle died in Cologne in 2016, aged 54. Tributes reflected both his polarising political style and the warmth recalled by people who knew him personally.

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