“I didn’t say anything, but I was furious…”

Bernadette Chirac may have been the First Lady for 12 years, but she did not always feel respected at the Elysée. The one played by Catherine Deneuve in the film Bernadettebroadcast on France 2 this May 3 at 9:10 p.m., had told in the book Conversation by Patrick de Carolis, released in 2001, the day she was humiliated at the presidential palace…

Bernadette Chirac, humiliated at the Elysée: “That would make dad, mom and the children…”

The wife of Jacques Chirac, now aged 92 and who today leads a discreet existence, remembered that on July 14, 1995, the year he had just taken office as president, delegations of young people representing the different regions of France were expected at the Elysée. The newly elected President of the Republic had planned to have lunch with them in the Paulin salon of the presidential palace and around forty place settings had been set… but the first lady had not been invited to this reception!

“When consulting the list of guests, I saw that there was a young farmer from my canton (in Corrèze, where she was a local elected official, editor’s note). So I told my husband that it would be a pleasure for me to be at the table with him“, she said. Jacques Chirac then gave his agreement for the staff to prepare a plate for his wife. But quickly, a palace collaborator explained to Bernadette Chirac that her wish was not achievable. “Madam, it is impossible for you to have lunch with the president and the young farmers, because, you understand, that would make dad, mom and the children”, he declared, the First Lady recalled in the work. His cover was then removed!

Bernadette Chirac, a “very self-effacing” first lady?

Resigned, Bernadette Chirac was therefore unable to have lunch with her husband and the other guests as she would have liked. A real humiliation. “I didn’t say anything, but I was furious“, she confided. But looking back, the former boss of the Yellow Pieces regrets having let such a situation occur.

This type of incident occurred numerous times during her husband’s mandates… and the image of the former First Lady suffered: “I was taken for a very self-effacing person. It’s a label that has stuck with me for a long time. The press made reference to it claiming that ‘I didn’t exist’ or even that ‘I didn’t appear in family photos‘”. The nonagenarian also regretted not having been smiling enough at the time…