'Prince of fashion' Yves Saint Laurent given grand farewell

0 Comments | AFP, June, 2008

PARIS (AFP) — With a military salute, crowds thronging the streets and the cream of global couture in attendance, France's "prince of fashion", Yves Saint Laurent, was given a grand send-off at his funeral Thursday.

A bevy of celebrities including Catherine Deneuve, France's ex-supermodel first lady Carla Bruni, and Farah Diba, widow of the last Shah of Iran, were among the 800 people at the funeral which ended with tears and a military salute.

"These are my last words to you Yves," said his longtime lover and business partner Pierre Berge as pallbearers prepared to hoist the coffin into the street, where more than 1,000 mourners had thronged to offer a final farewell.

"You cannot hear me, you cannot reply," said Berge, who founded the iconic YSL house in...