Chirac, who served as president from 1995 to 2007, was feted by many French people for asserting their country’s role as a global player, a stance that put him at odds with Washington over the invasion of Iraq in 2003.
Former United States president Bill Clinton spoke fondly of Chirac as he left the Elysee palace.
“Always very French, very protective of French interests but in a way that brought people together and not drove them apart. I mean look who came today, he tried to bring people together,” he said.
Chirac was buried at the Montparnasse cemetery in Paris, in a plot next to his daughter Laurence, who died in 2016.
(Production: Noemie Olive and Pascale Antonie)