Celine Dion, 56, and her late husband René Angélil were married for a whopping 21 years, with their friends describing their relationship as a ‘love story.’

The couple – who had a 26-year age gap – got married in 1994, renewed their vows in 2000 and welcomed three children René-Charles, Nelson and Eddy, but René sadly died from cancer in 2016. Take a look back at Celine and René’s marriage…

Tearful first meeting

The couple met when the ‘My Heart Will Go On’ singer was just 12 years old and René, 38, became her manager. Celine opened up to People about her first meeting with her future husband, revealing that her incredible voice reduced him to tears. “While I was singing he started to cry,” said that star, who suffers from stiff person’s syndrome. “I knew then I had done a good job.”

The two had a very close working relationship with the manager proving his confidence in Celine’s talent by mortgaging his home to fund her debut album ‘La voix du bon Dieu.’

Their friendship eventually blossomed into a romance when Celine turned 19, but they kept their love life under wraps for several years before the singer revealed her love for René in the sleeve notes of her ‘The Colour of My Love’ album.

In a heartbreaking interview in 2018, Celine recalled how their relationship developed over time. “I fell in love with him immediately. Not in the romance way, I was 12 years old. I was in love with the way he treated everyone around me, including my whole family and myself.”