The Élysée announced Thursday a reshuffle of Sébastien Lecornu's government, noting the arrival of Catherine Pgard, former president of the Château de Versailles, to Culture and the return of Macronist Sabrina Roubache as Minister Delegate in charge of Vocational Education and Training and Apprenticeship. Government spokesperson Maud Bregeon also becomes Deputy Minister for Energy.
Published on: 02/26/2026 - 6:30 p.m. Modified on: 02/26/2026 - 7:04 p.m.
Four new ministers are entering the government, including Catherine Pgard, advisor to Emmanuel Macron, for Culture, replacing Rachida Dati, the Élysée announced on Thursday February 26 in a press release.
This discreet 71-year-old woman arrives at Rue de Valois without being either an enarch or a senior civil servant, but with excellent knowledge of the world of culture and a solid address book.
Catherine Pgard was in turn editor-in-chief of the weekly Le Point, advisor to Nicolas Sarkozy, president of the Versailles estate for more than 12 years, a record, then returned to the Élysée with Emmanuel Macron since September 2025.
Born on August 5, 1954 in Le Havre (Seine-Maritime), this holder of a degree in history and a master's degree in political science, became a political journalist at the short-lived newspaper "J'informe" (1977), at Le Quotidien de Paris (1978-1981) before joining Le Point in 1982.
Senior reporter, department head, then editor-in-chief of the weekly from 1995, she left this position in May 2007 to become advisor to the newly elected President Sarkozy.
In 2011, Catherine Pgard was appointed by Nicolas Sarkozy to head the Public Establishment of the Palace of Versailles, one of the most coveted positions in the world of culture. This choice is criticized by some because of his lack of experience in the management of an administration, as well as in the heritage sphere.
At the head of an estate characterized by its gigantism (830 hectares of park, 2,300 rooms), she served a first five-year term under Nicolas Sarkozy, was renewed for three years in 2016 by François Hollande and again for three years in 2019 by Emmanuel Macron.
From the Palace of Versailles, to the Ministry of Culture
During the 12 years of Catherine Pgard's presidency, more than 10,000 additional m2 of the Versailles estate were opened to the public and restored, such as the Mesdames apartments (the six daughters of Louis XV), the Royal Chapel, the Dauphin's apartments, and the Jeu de Paume room, an emblematic place of the French Revolution.
“They say that Versailles is a permanent construction site, and it remains so,” she liked to point out.
After being extended, Catherine Pgard finally leaves Versailles in 2022.
In 2024, she was appointed director of cultural development for the French Agency for the development of Al-Ula (Afalula), the Nabataean historic site in Saudi Arabia.
In September 2025, she returned to the Élysée when Emmanuel Macron called her to become his culture advisor, replacing Philippe Bélaval.
In addition to this expected appointment, former Macronist minister Sabrina Roubache returns as delegate minister responsible for Vocational Education and Training and Apprenticeship. Government spokesperson Maud Bregeon also becomes Deputy Minister for Energy.
The Head of State also appointed the Macronist group deputy Camille Galliard-Minier as deputy minister responsible for Autonomy and People with Disabilities, replacing Charlotte Parmentier-Lecocq who wanted to regain her seat in the National Assembly, and the Les Républicains deputy Jeand-Didier Berger to the Minister of the Interior Laurent Nunez.
With AFP
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