Ursula von der Leyen

Defense Minister of Germany
Ursula von der Leyen

Ursula von der Leyen is the first female defense minister of Germany. She oversees 250,000 soldiers and civilians. Before becoming defense minister she served as labour and social affairs minister.

Ms. von der Leyen was born in Brussels and studied economics at the London School of Economics. She switched to medicine 1n 1980, graduating from Hanover Medical School in 1987.  After seven years she acquired her medical license and then worked as an assistant physician at the Women’s Clinic of the Hanover Medical School. Upon completing her postgraduate studies, she graduated as a Doctor of Medicine in 1991 and worked as a gynaecologist. She speaks, German, French and English. She is married and the mother of 7 children.

Her political career started in 2003 when she was elected to the Parliament of Lower Saxony. She was a minister in the state government of Lower Saxony with responsibility for social affairs, women, family, and health. In 2005, Ursula von der Leyen was appointed Federal Minister of Family Affairs, Senior Citizens, Women and Youth in the cabinet of Angela Merkel. On the occasion of the 60th anniversary of the founding of Israel, von der Leyen participated in the first joint cabinet meeting of the governments of Germany and Israel in Jerusalem.

In 2009 von der Leyen was elected to the Bundestag, Germany’s Parliament, representing the 42nd electoral district of Hanover. In the negotiations to form a coalition government following the elections, she led the CDU/CSU delegation in the working group on health policy. She was reappointed as family minister.

In 2013, Ursula von der Leyen was appointed as Germany’s first female defence minister. Ms. von der Leyen is one of only three ministers to remain with Merkel since she became chancellor in 2005.

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