The complex succession of the French historian and essayist Patrick Buisson has finally been resolved. More than two and a half years after the death of one of the main advisors to former French President Nicolas Sarkozy, an agreement between the various parties involved has confirmed the Fraternidad San Vicente Ferrer as the universal heir to his estate, while also determining the fate of the French intellectual’s most sensitive political archives.
Buisson, who died on December 26, 2023, at the age of 74, had stipulated in a will drawn up in March 2021 that the Fraternidad San Vicente Ferrer would receive all of his assets. However, the presence in the estate of a significant documentary collection—comprising manuscripts, correspondence, notebooks, hard drives, and thousands of digital files related to his political activity—necessitated a lengthy process to determine which documents should remain part of the inheritance and which should be classified as public archives.
Élysée documents to be transferred to the National Archives
The main point of contention concerned the documentation generated during the years when Buisson was part of Nicolas Sarkozy’s inner circle at the Élysée Palace. This material included the famous recordings made between 2007 and 2012, as well as notes, draft speeches, reports, and other documents related to the activities of the French Presidency.
Following an inventory conducted by the National Archives of France, it was decided that all documentation linked to the exercise of the Presidency of the Republic would be incorporated into the official archives of Nicolas Sarkozy’s presidency, where it will be preserved in accordance with French legislation on public archives. Access to these records will remain subject to the restrictions provided by law and may only be authorized within the timeframes and conditions established for this type of documentation.
The Fraternidad San Vicente Ferrer nonetheless retains its status as the universal heir to the remainder of Patrick Buisson’s estate, following the resolution of a succession that lasted more than two and a half years.
A close relationship with the Fraternity
The testamentary decision was not made on a whim. Patrick Buisson had maintained a close relationship for years with the Fraternidad San Vicente Ferrer and with traditionalist Catholic circles in France. In 2018, he participated, alongside Father Louis-Marie de Blignières, founder of the Fraternity, in a conference dedicated to the legacy of May 1968, and subsequently remained in contact with the community, even raising the possibility of entrusting it with the custody of his archives.
A historian and essayist, Buisson repeatedly defended the role of Christianity as one of the pillars of French identity and civilization. This closeness to the Church was also recognized by the Holy See, which, during the pontificate of Benedict XVI, awarded him in 2010 the dignity of Commander of the Order of St. Gregory the Great, one of the principal pontifical distinctions granted to lay faithful for their service to the Church.
With the resolution of the succession, the Fraternidad San Vicente Ferrer preserves the legacy that Patrick Buisson wished to entrust to it during his lifetime, while the documents related to the French Presidency will become part of the State’s documentary heritage, ensuring their preservation for the historical study of Nicolas Sarkozy’s five-year term.