Here’s a look at the life of former Philippines First Lady Imelda Marcos.
Personal:
Birth date: July 2, 1929
Birth place: Manila, Philippines (some sources say Leyte Province)
Birth name: Imelda Remedios Visitacion Romualdez
Father: Vicente Orestes Romualdez
Mother: Remedios Trinidad
Marriage: Ferdinand Marcos (May 1, 1954-September 28, 1989, his death)
Children: Irene, 1960; Ferdinand Jr. “Bongbong”, 1957; Imee (daughter), 1955
Other Facts:
Her nickname in the Philippines was the “Iron Butterfly.”
Wife of the late Ferdinand Marcos, who ruled the Philippines for twenty years until he was ousted in 1986.
The Marcoses were accused of stealing billions of dollars from the Philippine people during Ferdinand’s presidency.
Famous for her lavish spending while first lady. At the time of husband’s ouster from office in 1986, she left over 1,000 pairs of shoes and more than 800 purses behind when fleeing to Hawaii.
Timeline:
1954 - Imelda marries Ferdinand Marcos 11 days after meeting him.
December 30, 1965 - Marcos becomes First Lady of the Philippines at her husband’s first presidential inauguration.
September 21, 1972 - President Ferdinand Marcos signs a martial law decree, which he publicly declares two days later.
December 7, 1972 - Is stabbed in her arms and hands during an assassination attempt by Carlito Dimahilig.
1975-1986 - Appointed governor of Metropolitan Manila.
1978-1986 - Appointed Minister of Human Settlements.
January 17, 1981 - President Marcos lifts martial law.
February 1986 - The Marcos family flees to Hawaii after the Filipino people oust Ferdinand Marcos from office. He dies three years later in exile.
1990 - Marcos goes on trial in New York for racketeering. The charges allege she stole from the Philippines National Bank and invested the money in the United States. She is later acquitted of the charges.
November 4, 1991 - Marcos returns from exile to the Philippines and is arrested the next day for tax fraud and corruption. She is released on $6,400 bail.
1992 - After returning to the Philippines, Marcos runs unsuccessfully for president.
1993 - Marcos goes on trial in the Philippines for graft and is found guilty.
1995-1998 - Marcos serves in the Philippines House of Representatives.
January 29, 1998 - The Supreme Court upholds Marcos’ 1993 corruption conviction and sentence of 12 years in prison. A second appeal is denied.
February 7, 1998 - Marcos declares her intent to run for president.
April 29, 1998 - Marcos withdraws from the presidential race.
October 6, 1998 - The Philippine Supreme Court overturns Marcos’ 1993 conviction of graft. She faced a 12-year prison sentence and $4.3 million fine.
2004 - Marcos appears as herself in the documentary “Imelda.”
November 2006 - Marcos launches fashion line, The Imelda Collection.
June 13, 2007 - Marcos is acquitted on five counts of tax violations.
July 2007 - Government loses case claiming rights to $4.7 million in Marcos’ account after 10 years of prosecution against the Security Bank and Trust Co.
March 10, 2008 - A Philippine court acquits Marcos in a 17-year-old case of 32 counts of illegal transfer of wealth totaling $863 million in Swiss bank accounts.
May 11, 2010 - Marcos wins a seat representing Ilocos Norte province in the Philippine House of Representatives.
September 9, 2010 - A Philippine court orders Marcos to repay the government almost $280,000 for funds taken from the National Food Authority by Ferdinand Marcos in 1983.