A documentary series, broadcast on Sunday on France 5, looks back on the career of the far-right leader, who died at the age of 96, and on the origin of his fortune, which he owes to his friend Hubert Lambert.
And “menhir” for his supporters, “the devil of the Republic” for his opponents. Jean-Marie Le Pen, whose funeral took place on Saturday January 11 in La Trinité-sur-Mer (Morbihan), never left anyone indifferent and left his mark on French political life by placing the far right takes center stage. A documentary series, entitled, Jean-Marie Le Pen: To the extremeproduced by Raphaël Tresanini and Jean-Pierre Canet, paints a portrait in three parts of this sulphurous politician, in based on an interview carried out in April 2022, on the exclusive testimony of those close to him and on previously unknown archives.
From his election to the National Assembly in 1956 in the wake of the populist Pierre Poujade to his qualification for the second round of the 2002 presidential election, including his marital problems, this documentary retraces the journey of a man condemned for his provocations and its excesses. An existence punctuated by multiple controversies and numerous gray areas, including the origin of his fortune.
It was in 1976 that Jean-Marie Le Pen inherited the domain of Montretout, his imposing residence located on the heights of Saint-Cloud (Hauts-de-Seine), when Hubert Lambert died at the age of 42. A member of the National Front of which he was one of the donors, this rich industrialist in fragile health, single and without children, had made Jean-Marie Le Pen his universal legatee a few months before his death. Quickly this inheritance, the amount of which is estimated “more than 20 million euros” in the documentary, makes headlines and creates suspicion.
“I told Hubert: ‘Look, that doesn’t commit you to anything, anyway, you’re 10 years younger than me!'”
Jean-Marie Le Penin the documentary
The family of the deceased quickly questioned the validity of the will and requested its annulment, convinced that Hubert Lambert had been manipulated by the founder of the National Front.
The suspicious will of Jean-Marie Le Pen’s inheritance
Which a friend of the far-right politician in the film does not seem to deny. “With Jean-Marie [Le Pen]everything is curiousaffirms Jacques Peyrat. This did not surprise me, especially since I know Pierrette well [Le Pen] and I know what she must have done… the charm.” An argument that Jean-Marie Le Pen’s ex-wife rejects.
“The poor [Hubert Lambert]he was quite incapable of being charmed by anything. We could see that he wasn’t a healthy guy and he wanted us to inherit, so obviously the cousins weren’t happy.”
Pierrette Le Penin the documentary
Hubert Lambert’s family went so far as to ask for an autopsy on his body. “They thought we killed him!” laughs Pierrette Le Pen. After a legal standoff which lasted months, an amicable agreement was reached between the two parties but suspicion remained. “If there was something doubtful in this whole affair, you can imagine that my adversaries would have used it”believes Jean-Marie Le Pen in front of the camera. The fact remains that this unexpected legacy contributes to the expansion of the far-right party and its ideas.
The documentary series Jean-Marie Le Pen: To the extreme, produced by Raphaël Tresanini and Jean-Pierre Canet, is broadcast Sunday January 12 at 9:05 p.m. on France 5 and on the france.tv platform.
