Former French first lady Bernadette Chirac dies aged 93

Bernadette Chirac, the former first lady of France, has died at the age of 93. Her daughter, Claude Chirac, confirmed the death to AFP on Saturday, stating that she passed away peacefully on Friday evening surrounded by loved ones. Born Bernadette Chodron de Courcel in Paris in 1933, she grew up in a family of diplomats in the 16th arrondissement before meeting her husband, Jacques Chirac, while studying at Sciences Po.

She served alongside President Jacques Chirac at the Élysée Palace from 1995 to 2007. During this 12-year period, she established significant political influence in rural Corrèze, where she served as a general councillor from 1979 to 2015. This tenure made her the only French first lady to have held political office in her own right.

While she remained largely in the background during her husband’s first term, her influence grew substantially during the second term. She played a crucial role in Jacques Chirac’s re-election campaign in 2002 and was known for her conservative views, having previously warned against the dissolution of parliament in 1997.

Chirac became particularly popular with the French public as the head of the Pièces Jaunes (Yellow Coins) campaign. This initiative raised funds to benefit hospitalised children, transforming it into a national institution. Her political acumen was noted by contemporaries, with Jacques Chirac later writing in his memoirs that she was the only one to warn him about the rise of National Front leader Jean-Marie Le Pen.

Paul Smith, head of modern languages and associate professor in French at the University of Nottingham, described her as a "discreet force" and the "rock" on which her husband's political career was based. She is remembered as a steel-willed figure who balanced public charity work with private political strategy throughout her life.