Carla and Nicolas Tie the Knot
Photo of Nicolas and Carla courtesy of Google Images
THE TELEGRAPH: French president Nicolas Sarkozy has married ex-supermodel Carla Bruni in a "secret" ceremony at the Elysée Palace in Paris.

The wedding took place just two and a half months after they met, and three and a half months after he divorced his second wife.

They were married at 11am with François Lebel, mayor of Paris's fashionable 8th arrondissement - in which the palace is situated - officiating.

Mr Sarkozy, 53, and Miss Bruni, 40, exchanged vows in a state room on the first floor of the presidential palace after a highly-publicised whirlwind romance.

Mr Lebel said: "I married two voters from the 8th arrondissement, who live at 55 rue du Faubourg St Honoré," referring to the address of the palace, which is next door to the British Embassy.

"Historically, this is the first time in the history of the Republic that a president has married in the course of his term. It's the first time a president has married at the Elysée," he said.

"Carla married in white and looked ravishing," Mr Lebel added.

Now the controversial model, whose past loves include Mick Jagger and Eric Clapton, will be France's First Lady.

Suggesting that the wedding was a last minute, spontaneous affair, Mr Sarkozy announced the cancellation of a visit to the military base at Creil, north of Paris, due for Saturday afternoon.

One of the reasons for the sudden marriage was apparently next month's planned state visit to Britain, with Mr Sarkozy concerned about being a guest of the Queen at Windsor Castle with only a "live-in lover" to accompany him.

Witnesses were Prada executive Mathilde Agostinelli - a close friend of the previous Madame Sarkozy - and Nicolas Bazire, managing director of Groupe Arnault and one of the richest men in France. France's Nicolas Sarkozy marries Carla Bruni >>> By Peter Allen in Paris

REUTERS:
Sarkozy marries Bruni at the Elysee By Crispian Balmer and Sudip Kar-Gupta

LE FIGARO:
Nicolas Sarkozy a épousé
Carla Bruni ce matin De Samuel Potier

LE MONDE:
Nicolas Sarkozy et Carla Bruni se sont mariés samedi matin à l'Elysée

EUROPE 1:
Nicolas Sarkozy et Carla Bruni maries

SUEDDEUTSCHE:
Hochzeit, na endlich: Seit Wochen wird ... spekuliert, Bruni erwarte ein Kind

NZZ Online: Nicolas Sarkozy und Carla Bruni haben geheiratet: Der französische Präsident vermählt sich mit der Sängerin >>>

BLICK:
Sarkozy hat gerade eine Scheidung hinter sich, Bruni, die sich selbst als sexuell massloss bezeichnet, hat schon ganz andere Alpha-Männchen in die Wüste geschickt: Mick Jagger, Eric Clapton oder Donald Trump können ein Lied davon singen. Und wahre Liebe dauere bei ihr sowieso «nie länger als drei Monate». – Blick

Ex-Frau Cécilia: [Nicolas Sarkozy ist] «unfähig zu lieben» - Blick

Mark Alexander (Paperback)
Mark Alexander (Hardback)

Sarkozy’s Marriage On the Rocks
THE TELEGRAPH: President Nicolas Sarkozy of France and his wife Cécilia have divorced "by mutual consent", the Elysée Palace confirmed today.

Pressure had been building on Mr Sarkozy to make a statement about his marriage amid fears that the issue could overshadow the EU summit in Lisbon, where European leaders are due to agree a text for a simplified European treaty.

Mr Sarkozy, 52, and Cécilia, a 49-year old former model, have been married for 11 years and have five children: two each from their first marriages and their own son, Louis.

The television news channel LCI and the Liberation newspaper quoted judicial sources yesterday as saying that Cécilia had applied to a judge for a divorce on Monday and that a judge visited the Elysée Palace later that evening to see Mr Sarkozy to validate the procedure. Nicolas Sarkozy announces end of his marriage (more) By Henry Samuel in Paris

Nicolas Sarkozy 'struck by lightning' at Cécilia By Henry Samuel in Paris

Frankreichs Präsident Sarkozy und seine Frau trennen sich: Bestätigung nach wochenlangen Gerüchten

LE FIGARO:
Nicolas et Cécilia Sarkozy divorcent de Samuel Laurent

TRIBUNE DE GENÈVE:
Nicolas Sarkozy et son épouse Cécilia officialisent leur separation

Mark Alexander

Speculation Mounts About Sarkozy’s Marriage
SPIEGELONLINE INTERNATIONAL: French President Nicolas Sarkozy and his wife Cecilia are rumored to be on the verge of divorce. If confirmed, it would mark the end of the president's attempts to create an image of domestic harmony for political gain.

Cecilia Sarkozy is the only topic that evokes both loving adoration and admissions of vulnerability from France's habitually gruff president. "She's my strength and my Achilles heel at the same time," admitted Nicolas Sarkozy in the fall of 2003, long before he moved into the presidential Elysee Palace.

As late as this spring, he was convinced that voters would be charmed by his wife: "If you loved Jacqueline Kennedy, you are going to adore Cecilia Sarkozy." But then his confidence waned by summer: "At the end of the day, my only real worry is Cecilia."

For weeks, the signs have been mounting that the presidential couple may be headed toward an imminent break up. There is no other plausible explanation for her constant absence from public life. Compared to Cecilia Sarkozy, German Chancellor Angela Merkel's notoriously publicity-shy spouse Joachim Sauer looks like her constant companion. Is the Sarkozy Marriage On the Rocks? (more)
Mark Alexander

A Relaxed Sarkozy, Cigar in Hand, Brushes Off Speculation About His Marriage and About His G8 Appearance Allegedly 'Under the Influence of Alcohol'
THE TELEGRAPH: The relationship between the French president and his wife Cécilia, who have separated before, has been under intense scrutiny.

But speaking to French journalists at the Elysée palace, a relaxed Mr Sarkozy, cigar and chocolates in hand, said: "Cécilia and I are judged on the basis of people's fantasies and not on what we are. So we just stay quiet."

His comments came ahead of his first televised interview since he took office in May. Addressing the French people last night, he vowed to push through his policies, no matter how unpopular some labour and tax reforms might prove. Sarkozy bats away talk of split from wife (more) By Henry Samuel in Paris

Mark Alexander