Bernadette Chirac, widow of former French president, dies at 93
Bernadette Chirac, widow of former French president Jacques Chirac, died on Friday evening at the age of 93, her daughter Claude Chirac told AFP on Saturday.
Born Bernadette Chodron de Courcel, Chirac “passed away peacefully in the evening, surrounded by her loved ones”, her daughter said.
She had just turned 93 on May 18.
She was France's only first lady to have held political office in her own right, as a general councillor for the Corrèze department in central France, where she served continuously from 1979 to 2015.
Married to Jacques Chirac for over 60 years, she remained largely in the shadow of the "great man", accompanying him through the various stages of his political career until his victory in the 1995 presidential election, on his third attempt.
Bernadette Chirac was born on May 18, 1933, in Paris and grew up in a family of diplomats in the 16th arrondissement of the capital. While studying at the prestigious Sciences Po Paris institution she met Jacques Chirac, whom she married in 1956. Bernadette and Jacques Chirac, then Prime Minister, arrive at the Quai d'Orsay on April 24, 1975 to attend a dinner.
During her husband's first presidential term (1995-2002), she was initially relegated to the background but she played a crucial role in her husband's re-election in 2002 and became very popular with the French public, notably as the head of the Pièces Jaunes (Yellow Coins) campaign to benefit hospitalised children.
She was also a favourite among right-wing politicians, who vied for her support in municipal and legislative elections.
With her classic, bourgeois appearance possessing a strong political acumen "Bernie", as she was nicknamed, was considered far more conservative than her husband.
Jacques Chirac said that she was the only one to warn him about the rise of National Front leader Jean-Marie Le Pen during the 2002 presidential election.
She also warned Chirac in 1997 against the disastrous consequences of dissolving parliament, a move she attributed to the then Secretary General of the Élysée Palace, Dominique de Villepin, whom she called "Nero" in private.
"She is the woman of my life, we have accomplished so much together!" Jacques Chirac wrote of her in his memoirs.
This is a breaking news story and will be updated.
(FRANCE 24 with AFP)