Astrid Herrenschmidt: Wife Of France's Education Minister Found Dead In Apparent Suicide
Suicide? Astrid Herrenschmidt, the wife of the French education minister, was found dead at the couple's Paris home earlier this morning
The wife of France's high-profile education minister Luc Chatel today committed suicide at the couple's home in Paris.
Astrid Herrenschmidt, 45 and the mother of four children, was found by her own mother early on Sunday morning.
Mr Chatel, 47, who was not thought to be home at the time, 'today confirmed the personal tragedy that happened this morning,' said his chief of staff, Phillippe Gustin.
'What happened should entail respect for the private life of his children, his family and for him,' Mr Gustin added.
The was no official confirmation about how Ms Herrenschmidt killed herself, although police sources at the town house in the upmarket suburb of Boulogne-Billancourt suggested her body was found hanging.
Mr Chatel, who was born in Maryland, in America, had been married to Ms Herrenschmidt for 21 years, and she provided massive support for his political career.
Not only was she hugely supportive as a wife, but Ms Herrenschmidt was a leather industry and asphalt mines heiress from the German border region of Alsace.
Today police set up a security cordon around Mr Chatel's house, as forensics offices examined the scene.
Mr Chatel is also a huge Anglophile who last year infuriated French traditionalists by saying: 'Not mastering English in France these days is a handicap.'
He said that there were plans to teach three-year olds English with the help of computers – meaning that French children would start learning the language some eight years before English children learn French.
Mr Chatel, who is a close political ally of President Nicolas Sarkozy, became education minister in France in 2010.
He too comes original comes from an industrialists family, and at one stage in his career worked in marketing for French cosmetics giant L'Oreal.
As a former spokesman for the ruling UMP party, he is seen as a key player in Mr Sarkozy's bid to be re-elected this Spring.
There will be a post mortem held into Ms Herrenschmidt's death on Monday morning.
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Astrid Herrenschmidt: Wife of France's education minister found dead in apparent suicide | Mail Online
