Bernadette Chirac Dies at 93, French President Emmanuel Macron Confirms

Bernadette Chirac, the former first lady of France who spent twelve years in the Élysée Palace from 1995 to 2007 alongside President Jacques Chirac, has died at 93.

“Paris, June 6 (EFE) - Bernadette Chirac, widow of former French president Jacques Chirac, died at the age of 93, according to her family who informed the local press on Saturday”

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French President Emmanuel Macron confirmed her death on Saturday and said that he and his wife Brigitte had received with 'great sadness' the news of the death of a woman who helped shape the history of France alongside Jacques Chirac.

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The La Razón profile says she built her own political power in the rural Corrèze region and transformed a charitable organization for children's hospitals into a national institution.

It also says she was born Bernadette Thérèse Marie Chodron de Courcel on May 18, 1933 in Paris, and that she married Jacques Chirac in March 1956.

The La Razón account adds that she remained at the helm of the children’s hospital charity until 2019, when she ceded responsibility to Brigitte Macron and became honorary president.

Le Monde.fr describes Bernadette Chirac as having freed herself from the constraints of official rhetoric when she became first lady in 1995, including a 1979 interview withEllemagazine where she said: "You can never be too careful with women."

Le Monde.fr also recounts that in 1972, at the age of 40, she decided to earn an archaeology degree against Jacques Chirac’s wishes, adding: "Listen, old man, I'm big enough to handle things myself!"

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In a profile interview in 1999, Le Monde.fr quotes her response to a newspaperLibération question with: "Do you take me for a bug that lives in the sacristy, a spider in the confessional booth, a frog in the holy water font?"

Le Monde.fr further says she often delivered her best lines on the campaign trail, including: "I'm like my snakeskin bag: I bite."

The Guardian similarly frames her as a driving force behind Jacques Chirac’s political rise and quotes her 2007-era political shift: “My husband no longer does politics, but I do.”

WWD says Bernadette Chirac, a longtime supporter of France’s luxury and fashion industries, died at the age of 93, with her daughter Claude saying in a statement to AFP that she died Friday, June 5.

WWD reports that French president Emmanuel Macron described her as a “great woman of heart” who “left her mark on our history” and “changed so many lives with discretion and determination.”

WWD also says she joined the board of LVMH in 2010 and served until 2019, quoting LVMH Moët Hennessy chief executive officer Bernard Arnault: “I am deeply saddened by the passing of Bernadette Chirac.”

The Guardian adds that when Jacques Chirac stood back from public life in 2007, she became a politician in her own right as a councillor in the couple’s constituency in Corrèze in central France.

La Razón says her charitable work focused on hospitalized children, and that she transformed the organization she led into a national institution while remaining at the helm until 2019.