Why Bill Gates broke up with his wife after 27 years of marriage

Bill and Melinda Gates lived together for more than a quarter of a century, and to many seemed the personification of a harmonious, strong union of two equal people.

The announcement of the separation of the spouses came as a shock to many people, the tabloids immediately suggested that this divorce could become one of the most expensive in the world. Bill and Melinda Gates try to remain calm and not comment on what is happening, and the public is discussing the reasons that led to the collapse of the famous family.

How it all began

Bill and Melinda Gates were always happy to share the story of their acquaintance, which took place when the girl ended up in the position of product manager at Microsoft. However, the first meeting did not lead to anything special. A sluggish romance happened, which both Bill and Melinda considered completely non-binding. At the same time, Bill Gates, in addition to Melinda, was passionate about work, but the girl was not without pleasure spending time with other fans.

And yet, the mutual attraction did not let them go, and after a year, both clearly understood that they had only two options for the development of events. They should either break off relations in an instant or go to the altar together. Bill Gates, as a pragmatist, even compiled a list of all the pros and cons of getting married.

And after both of them made an important decision for themselves, the marriage of Bill and Melinda Gates seemed unbreakable. Despite the difficult times in the life of the spouses, they always remained together. And Melinda even shared the secrets of her strong marriage just a couple of years ago. She admitted: she sometimes had thoughts of divorce, but the family survived thanks to mutual patience and the ability to turn a blind eye to the minor mistakes of the second half.

Step by step, the spouses learned to be equal in marriage, tech and work, overcame the imbalance between family and business, and joint work in a common Fund brought them closer and taught them to find compromises. Melinda wrote in her memoirs how she was able to defend her rights in the family, having taught her husband and children to help her in the kitchen after the end of a family lunch or dinner and treat her functions as a wife and mother with great respect. And Bill Gates eventually took the position of a wife. At least from the outside, their marriage looked quite harmonious.

Possible reasons

Perhaps their family only seemed strong, and now, when the youngest daughter of the couple, Phoebe Adele, is already 18 years old, they can file a divorce with the least loss. But what could have led to the collapse of this marriage?

The tabloids put forward numerous versions according to which the couple decided to break up, and disagreement over work comes first. Since Bill Gates left the board of directors of Microsoft Corporation, he began to devote much more time to their work with Melinda Foundation, which until then was almost entirely controlled by his wife. The ambitions of both could affect the coexistence of Bill and Melinda, and in a pandemic, they were forced to spend all the time together and could not find a compromise between work and life together.

In second place is the assumption of a secret affair of Melinda Gates because the divorce proceedings were initiated on her initiative, and her husband only supported her decision. By the way, even before the announcement of the divorce, the spouses entered into a separation agreement.

Even though there is no evidence that Melinda Gates has an affair, some sources continue to insist on this version, mentioning, among other things, the time when future spouses were just building their relationship, and Melinda was dating other men, while Bill was busy with work.

And one of the sources even put forward a version that there was an agreement between Melinda and Bill, according to which Bill had the right to spend a weekend with his former passion once a year, and supposedly, his wife even encouraged him in this.

There is also a third version, according to which Melinda Gates filed for divorce for the sake of children. As you know, Bill Gates is going to donate all his fortune to charity, and in this case, the children get nothing but $10 million for three. According to the entrepreneur, all his heirs must achieve something in life themselves, and his money can benefit those in need. The children did not seem to be going to challenge their father’s decision.

But Melinda Gates could attend to the problems of inheritance for children and initiate a divorce in order to receive part of the money and then transfer it to the heirs. Opponents of this version argue that even before marriage, the spouses discussed the possibility of donating money to charity. At the same time, Melinda supported the idea of a spouse even before their eldest child was born.

By the way, one important detail plays in favor of this version. According to the source, whose name was not disclosed, the children of the spouses are extremely offended by their father. So far, only the eldest daughter of the spouses, 25-year-old Jennifer, has given her comments regarding the parents’ divorce, who reported on the problematic recent months for the family. But Jennifer’s likeness did not say, and all other family members remain silent.

Bill Gates and his wife Melinda were very active in charity work and promoted the idea that children should understand the importance of work and be able to support themselves. How the situation will change after the divorce remains unknown, but the former spouses intend to continue joint management of their charitable Foundation.