The funeral of Bernadette Chirac, widow of former President Jacques Chirac, will take place on Friday, June 12, at 14:30 p.m. in the Basilica of Sainte-Clotilde, in the 7th arrondissement of Paris. The former First Lady died at the age of 93.
Sainte-Clotilde, the choice of a lifetime
The Parisian ceremony will be held in a location deeply connected to the Chirac family history. Bernadette and Jacques Chirac were married in 1956 in the nearby Sainte-Clotilde chapel. It was also there that the funeral of their eldest daughter, Laurence Chirac, took place in 2016.
Corrèze, the other farewell
A second tribute will be paid to Bernadette Chirac on Sunday, June 14, in Corrèze, the department to which she remained attached for several decades. A religious ceremony is scheduled for 10:00 a.m. in the town of Corrèze, followed at 2:00 p.m. by a memorial service at the Sédières estate. This tribute will be open to the residents of Corrèze.
A local political figure
Beyond her role as the wife of the head of state, Bernadette Chirac pursued a personal political career in Corrèze. She served as a general councillor there from 1979 to 2015, a position she held for over thirty years. She remains one of the few former French First Ladies to have held an elected office in her own right for an extended period.
Expected personalities
Several political figures and close family members are expected to attend the funeral in Paris. Brigitte Macron, who succeeded Bernadette Chirac as head of the Hospitals Foundation, will be present. Nicolas Sarkozy and his wife Carla Bruni-Sarkozy, François Hollande, as well as Line Renaud, a close friend of Bernadette Chirac, are also expected.
The final chapter of a long public presence
Bernadette Chirac accompanied Jacques Chirac throughout his political rise, from the Paris mayoralty to the Élysée Palace, before occupying the position of First Lady for twelve years, from 1995 to 2007. She also made a mark on public opinion through her involvement in charitable operations related to hospitalized children, notably the Yellow Coins campaign.
With these ceremonies in Paris and then in Corrèze, it is the former First Lady, the local political leader and the familiar figure of French public life who will be honoured one last time.
