French film icon Brigitte Bardot, 91, who passed away on Sunday, will be buried in a cemetery by the sea in the French Riviera resort of Saint-Tropez, a local authority spokesperson said Monday. The funeral is scheduled for January 7 at 1000 GMT at Notre-Dame-de-l’Assomption church in Saint-Tropez, BFM TV reported (as per Reuters).
Bardot made the coastal town her home for decades, saying she found peace there among animals and dedicated her life to their protection.
Saint-Tropez Remembers a Beloved Local Figure
Residents of Saint-Tropez reflected on Bardotâs presence in the town and the quiet life she led away from the spotlight. âShe was lovely, lovely, there’s no other word. Yes, we will really miss her,â longtime resident Philippe Volmier told Reuters on Monday.
Volmier said he had known Bardot for 30 years and often saw her walking her dogs along the beach.
âOne time, she fell into the water with her dog. I had to pick her out,â he added. âShe was a friend who helped people a lot.â
Tributes From French Leaders & Beyond
French President Emmanuel Macron paid tribute to Bardotâs legacy on Sunday, saying she embodied âa life of freedom.â
âA French existence, a universal radiance. She moved us. We mourn a legend of the century,â he said, as reported by Reuters.
Jordan Bardella of the far-right National Rally party, which Bardot publicly supported later in life, described her as a âpassionate patriotâ who represented âan entire era of French history.â
Bardot withdrew from acting in 1973 and devoted the rest of her life to animal rights activism. Her foundation highlighted her work advocating for animals worldwide, from Arctic campaigns to lobbying for animal welfare laws and pursuing convictions for abuse.
Bruno Jacquelin of the Brigitte Bardot Foundation told The Associated Press that Bardot died at her home in southern France. He did not disclose the cause of death.
For much of her later life, Bardot lived behind high walls in Saint-Tropez, surrounded by cats, dogs, and horses.
As per The Daily Mail, Bardot told French weekly Paris Match in 2024 that she wanted to be buried in her garden. The Var Prefecture told Reuters it had not received a request for a private burial, which would have been required for such a burial.
Her death came two months after she underwent what her staff described to AFP as âminor surgeryâ for an unspecified ailment, as reported by Reuters.
Bardot leaves behind a legacy that reshaped film, fashion, and animal advocacy, and a town that continues to claim her as its own.
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