Margot honecker biography

Margot Feist was born into a family of shoemakers. Her mother passed away in In the early s, she met Erich Honecker, who was 15 years her senior and married at the time. In , Margot gave birth to Erich's daughter, Sonja. He subsequently divorced his second wife and married Margot in She implemented policies that standardized the education system and introduced military education in schools.

She held this position for an unprecedented 25 years. In , Margot Honecker resigned from her post along with her husband.

Erich honecker cause of death

In , she was accused of involvement in dissident arrests and separating children from unfavorable parents against their will. Margot Honecker was unpopular among East Germans, earning the nicknames "Miss Education" and "Purple Witch" due to her purple-tinted hair. She was skilled in Russian and occasionally served as her husband's interpreter. From , Margot lived in Santiago, Chile, with her daughter and son-in-law.

Erich died in She unsuccessfully attempted to sue the German government for property confiscation in and lost her appeal to the European Court of Human Rights in Margot Honecker remained steadfast in her support of the GDR and criticized post-reunification policies. She gave public speeches, sang patriotic songs, and expressed her belief that East Germans had better lives in the GDR.