Awards

The awards – which are strictly limited in terms of numbers – are known as the “Mérite européen”. They consist of the “grand collier”, the “collier”, the gold, silver and bronze medals and the “diplôme d’honneur” and “diplôme de reconnaissance”. They are intended to reward those who have made a significant contribution to the objectives of the Foundation over and above their purely professional achievements. They symbolise, we should remember, “tribute paid to the struggle for the Union of peoples in freedom, peace and fraternity” and are a concrete expression of adherence to the Foundation’s motto “Wanting Europe, knowing its problems and acting to achieve it”.

These awards are:

The “grand collier”

of which only one has been awarded, at a prestigious academic ceremony in 2010, to mark the Foundation’s 40th anniversary, to HRH Grand Duke Henri of Luxembourg, who accepted it, on behalf of the Luxembourg people, for their commitment to Europe.

The “collier”

a very high-level award, only one of which is awarded annually to an eminent figure who embodies, in an exemplary and exceptional manner, the Foundation’s motto. The “collier” was awarded for the first time on the occasion of the Foundation’s 40th anniversary and, by way of exception, to four major European figures: Jerzy Buzek, President of the European Parliament, Herman Van Rompuy, President of the European Council, José Manuel Barroso, President of the European Commission, and Jean-Claude Juncker, Prime Minister of Luxembourg and President of the Eurogroup. In 2012 it was awarded to Jean-Claude Trichet, President of the European Central Bank. A very small number of gold, silver and bronze medals is awarded every year to people who have made a significant contribution to the Foundation’s aims.

The “diplôme d’honneur” and “diplôme de reconnaissance”

meet the same objective of recognising merit.

Some examples:

In the first 43 years of the Foundation’s history the most eminent figures from various fields – political, economic, humanist, scientific and cultural – were honoured for their struggle “for the union of the peoples of Europe, in freedom, peace and fraternity”, but also for their contribution to the development of European values.

They include: Simone Veil, former Minister and President of the European Parliament, Viviane Reding, former European Commissioner, Tadeusz Mazowiecki, former Head of the Polish Government, Franz König, Archbishop Emeritus of Vienna, Wilfried Martens, former Prime Minister of Belgium and President of the Parti populaire européen, Michel Rocard, Edward Heath and Pierre Werner, former Prime Ministers, Roy Jenkins, Gaston Thorn, Jacques Santer and José Manuel Barroso, successive former Presidents of the European Commission, Jean-Claude Juncker, former Luxembourg Prime Minister and President of the Eurogroup and current President of the European Commission, Hans-Dietrich Genscher, former German Foreign Minister, Martin Gray, internationally renowned humanist, Avi Primor, Israel’s former Ambassador to Germany, Hans-Gert Pöttering and Klaus Hänsch, former Presidents of the European Parliament, Kai-Uwe von Hassel, former President of the Deutscher Bundestag and founder of the German Circle of European Merit, Gao Xingjian, artist, writer and winner of the Nobel Prize for Literature in 2000, Ferran Adrià, voted the world’s top chef for five years, Herman Van Rompuy, first President of the European Council, Jean-Claude Trichet, former President of the European Central Bank, Sir Brian Unwin and Philippe Maystadt, former Presidents of the European Investment Bank, Lord Norman Foster, internationally renowned British architect and one of the leading exponents of high tech. architecture.

The cities of Santiago de Compostela and Strasbourg also received awards for their historic European past, which they actively project into the present.

Equally deserving of a mention are those (often anonymous) working at grass-roots level to promote the European idea, such as Liane Vissers van’t Hof, a secondary school teacher in the Netherlands who made an excellent film on Europe, with her students as the only actors, or Berendina van Sminia, who set up in the Netherlands a European Parliament of young people, which was highly successful in many European Union Member States. In Belgium mention should be made of people such as Mr and Mrs Edmond Warichet, geography and economics teachers respectively at a celebrated secondary school. They are the only couple to have received an award from the Fondation du Mérite européen for the example they have set, as they have each year both devoted some of their lessons to Europe, on a par with other subjects, for they believe that this should be part of the process of learning about European citizenship. It is also worth mentioning a number of schools that have received awards for their activities and their commitment to Europe or people such as the musician who reworked the European anthem.

The Awarded

1998

Cardinal Franz König, Mgr Fernand Franck

Award of the Mérite européen to His Eminence Cardinal Franz König, Emeritus Archbishop of Vienna. The Cardinal is flanked to his left by Bruno Turbang, President of the Executive Board, and to the right, by André Heiderscheid, President of the Fondation du Mérite européen’s Board of Directors.

Franz König (3 August 1905 – 13 March 2004) was an Austrian Cardinal of the Catholic Church. He served as archbishop of Vienna from 1956 to 1985, and was elevated to the cardinalate in 1958. The last surviving cardinal elevated by Pope John XXIII, he was the second-oldest and longest-serving cardinal worldwide at the time of his death.

2004

Chu Teh-Chun, Dean Jean-Marie Mantz, Marcel van de Voorde, Colette Hartwich

004 - Award of the Gold Medal of the Mérite européen to the internationally renowned artist/painter Chu Teh-Chun, to Jean-Marie Mantz, former Dean of Strasbourg’s Faculty of Medicine, who is very much involved in drawing up a European medical code of ethics, to Prof. Marcel van de Voorde, an eminent scientist, university professor and European nanoscience specialist, and to Colette Hartwich, who is responsible for various charitable projects.

2010

the 40th anniversary of the Foundation, a major event.

With its medals, particularly the gold medal, the Fondation du Mérite européen has been able to reward numerous people who have contributed to the construction, development and prestige of the European Union. In 2010, buoyed by an international reputation built up over the years, the Foundation created, for its 40th anniversary, two new awards modelled on national orders, the “grand collier” and the “collier”.

The “grand collier”, of which there is only one, was awarded, at a prestigious academic ceremony, to HRH Grand Duke Henri of Luxembourg, who accepted it, on behalf of the Luxembourg people, who have been renowned for their commitment to Europe since the common market was created in 1958. As an exception for this particular occasion, four “colliers” were awarded, for the first time, to the Presidents of the political institutions of the European Union, Jerzy Buzek, President of the European Parliament, Herman Van Rompuy, President of the European Council, José Manuel Barroso, President of the European Commission, and Jean-Claude Juncker, Prime Minister of Luxembourg, Minister of State and President of the Eurogroup.

At the presentation ceremony for the “grand collier” and “colliers”, impassioned appeals were made in their speeches by:

HRH Grand Duke Henri
of Luxembourg

“Europe cannot be built by treaties alone but above all by the individual actions of its citizens”.

Jerzy Buzek, President
of the European Parliament

“Europe must not be afraid of exporting its values. The European Union has a great capacity for promoting its model, its standards, its values and its culture of compromise internationally.”

Herman Van Rompuy,
President of the European Council

“With regard to the values on which the European Union was founded, too little time is spent talking about our values and too much about our interests”.

José Manuel Barroso,
President of the European Commission

“The European spirit must also be present in the decisions of the politicians at the national level; this is not the time for national self-interest.”

Jean-Claude Juncker,
Prime Minister and
Minister of State of Luxembourg

“The European Union is an affair of the heart that must be cared for, respected and cherished. European leaders must show themselves to be more intergovernmental in a Community way”.

Jacques Santer,
President of the Board of Directors
of the Fondation du Mérite européen,
Honorary Minister of State and
former President of the European Commission

“The European Union is a key factor in the gradual and peaceful expansion of democracy”.

Bruno Turbang,
President of the Executive Board
of the Fondation du Mérite européen

"Europe has a capacity for union in every field – history, humanism, the social sphere, culture, art, the sciences and its young people – to preserve a sense of well-being, it’s her revenge on history”.

2013

Donald Tusk

2013 - On 6th February, on his visit to Luxembourg, the then Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk (now President of the European Council since 1 December 2014) was awarded the “Mérite Européen” by Luxembourg's Jean-Claude Juncker for his achievements as a “great European.”

“The Polish Premier is one of the few statesmen who can reconcile national patriotism with European patriotism,” Juncker said in his speech of honour on Wednesday. He added that it was due to Tusk's efforts that Poland's voice in the EU was being heard today.

President of the “Mérite Européen” foundation, Jacques Santer, also praised Tusk. He also pointed out the fact that Germany had nominated Tusk for the award, saying that this was a clear sign of the success of the politics of reconciliation.

In his acceptance speech, Tusk frequently spoke about Europe's values, which were all the more important to Poland as its population was deprived of democracy under communist rule. He added that the road to becoming a member of the European Union had been long, but that all efforts had been worth it as Europe had always been a “Land of Dreams” for the Polish people.

Jean-Claude Trichet

There was an air of revenge on Wednesday night at the Cercle Cité, during the ceremony of the Collier du Mérite européen.

While Trichet, Honorary Governor of the Bank of France, former president of the European Central Bank, had given the laudatio for Jean-Claude Juncker at the presentation of the European Culture Prize on 12th December 2011 in Strasbourg, this time it was Jean-Claude Juncker, who had the honour of saluting the tremendous work of the former president of the ECB.

After greeting his "faithful and loyal friend", the Prime Minister highlighted the "willingness to serve" by Jean-Claude Trichet, head of the European Central Bank, who has "rendered many services to European Union and the euro. "

"Trichet has always maintained harmonious relations with the heads of state and heads of government," especially emphasised Jean-Claude Juncker. "You will leave the Grand Duchy covered in medals and you deserve it," he told Mr Juncker in conclusion.

Christine Lieberknecht, Elmar Brok, Paul Helminger

2013 - On 15th November, several politicians were awarded medals.

Among the Gold Medal award winners were the Prime Minister of Thüringen in Germany, Christine Lieberknecht and German member of the European Parliament, Elmar Brok, as well as the long-serving deputy as well as Mayor of the City of Luxembourg, Paul Helminger.

In his speech, the then Prime Minister Jean-Claude Juncker praised Christine Lieberknecht as a person who had rendered outstanding service, thanks to her devotion to Europe.

2014

Lord Norman Foster

2014 - On 27th May, Lord Foster was awarded the Médaille d'Or. The medal was presented by Jacques Santer, during a ceremony at the Salle da Vinci of the Ordre des Architectes et des Ingenieus-Conseils (OAI) in Luxembourg City. Following the ceremony, Lord Foster gave a lecture on the future of architecture in Europe, where he spoke of Royal-Hamilius, which his practice is currently designing in cooperation with the Bart Ringer office: "Tetra Kayser Associés". It is a mixed-use development in the heart of Luxembourg City, designed to provide an appropriate setting for the city’s UNESCO World Heritage Site, the project comprises a department store, offices, shops, apartments, and a variety of new social and civic spaces. This mix of use is increasing in the city and Lord Foster described how he believes he can set a new course on the edge of the old town. "If you go into a city, the perception and memory will centrally depend on how you move in it, how to get from one building to the next This does not mean that buildings are not important per se. Of course they are important, I am an architect. But it is the infrastructure of public space, the movement possibilities, the liveliness of the streets that determine the quality taken to the extreme, it is what draws people to Venice, which has no cars and the centre of perception is pedestrian dependant. I think that the urban movement once set up a competition among developers, but with the buildings of that period, it did not really transform this particular site on Boulevard Royal; but it is central to the high part of the historical old town. It has a transitional altitude and so it is slightly larger and thicker. But with "Royal Hamilius" there are different types of use, in particular the creation of quieter neighbourhoods around the public space. Offices and shopping opportunities are just around the corner. This is like a city in microcosm."

Lord Foster gave a lecture, after this award ceremony, at the awards for several other projects, where he pointed out similarities to "Royal Hamilius", for example, the Carré d'Art in Nîmes, the Port of Marseille and even Trafalgar Square in London. His offices have been able to achieve a new quality, having researched extensively such new public spaces and making a positive contribution to urban infrastructure.

2015

Enzo MAOVERO MILANESI, Roger CAYZELLE, Peter-Christian MULLER-GRAFF, Henrik KRÖNER

A welcome speech was given by Monsieur Marc HOSTERT, Member of the Luxembourg Court of Auditors and head of the cabinet office of Monsieur Henri GRETHEN.

The Introduction was presented by Monsieur Jacques SANTER - President of the Board of Directors.

Former Prime Minister and former President of the European Commission.