A 55-year-old stabbed his wife several times on a street in Völklingen in the Saarland on Tuesday.
Previously, he had ambushed the 51-year-old woman living separately from him and suddenly hit her on the head from behind, the police said.
After the fact, the man turned himself in at the police station in Völklingen.
Völklingen - The woman, who was not critically injured, was taken to a hospital.
She was initially unable to be questioned and her husband initially gave no information, as a police spokesman said.
The motive remained unclear for the time being.
The police spoke of an attempted homicide.
dpa