PARIS — Bernadette Chirac, the former first lady of France and a longtime supporter of the country’s luxury and fashion industries, has died at the age of 93.
Chirac died Friday, her daughter Claude said in a statement to AFP.
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.”
Born Bernadette Chodron de Courcel in Paris in 1933, she married Jacques Chirac in 1956 and accompanied him throughout his political career, including his presidency from 1995 to 2007.
While best known for her political influence and charitable work as the longtime public spokesperson of the Pièces Jaunes, a popular charity campaign for hospitalized children, Chirac also maintained close ties to France’s luxury sector. In 2010, she joined the board of LVMH, where she served until 2019.
