Les distinctions

Les distinctions, strictement limitées en nombre, sont dénommées « Mérite européen ». Elles consistent en grand collier, collier, médailles d'or, d'argent et de bronze ainsi qu'en diplômes d'honneur et de reconnaissance. Elles sont destines à récompenser celles et ceux qui ont apporté une contribution significative aux objectifs de la Fondation au-delà de leurs réalisations purement professionnelles. Elles concrétisent, rappelons-le, « un hommage rendu au combat pour l'Union des peuples dans la liberté, la paix et la fraternité » et l'exemplarité de l'adhésion à la devise de la Fondation « Vouloir l'Europe, connaitre ses problèmes, agir pour sa réalisation ».

Ces distinctions sont :

Le 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.

Le 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.

Les diplômes d'honneur et 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

le 40e anniversaire de la Fondation, un événement majeur

Avec ses médailles , et particulièrement la médaille d'or, la Fondation du Mérite européen a pu récompenser des nombreuses personnalités qui ont contribué à la construction, au développement et au prestige du l'Union européenne. Forte d'une renommée internationale bâtie au fil des années, la Fondation a créé, en 2010, pour son quarantième anniversaire et à l'instar des ordres nationaux, deux nouvelles distinctions, le grand collier et le collier.

Le grand collier, dont il n'existe qu'un seul exemplaire, a été remis lors d'une séance académique prestigieuse à S.A.R. le grand-duc Henri de Luxembourg qui l'a accepté au nom du peuple luxembourgeois, connu pour son engagement européen depuis la création, en 1958, du marché commun. Exceptionnellement pour la circonstance et, pour la première fois, quatre exemplaires du collier ont été remis aux présidents en exercice des institutions politiques de l'Union européenne, Jerzy Buzek, président du Parlement européen, Herman Van Rompuy, président du Conseil européen, José Manuel Barroso, président de la Commission européen, et Jean-Claude Juncker, Premier ministre du Luxembourg, ministre d'État et président de l'Eurogroupe.

Lors de la cérémonie de remise du grand collier et des colliers, de vibrants appels ont été lancés dans leurs discours par:

S.A.R. le grand duke Henri
de Luxembourg

« La construction de l'Union européenne ne se fait pas qu'à coups de traités, mais surtout à travers l'action individuelle des citoyens. »

Jerzy Buzek, président
du Parlement européen

« L'Europe ne doit pas avoir peur d'exporter ses valeurs. L'Union européenne a une forte capacité à promouvoir son modèle, ses standards, ses valeurs et sa culture du compromis à l'international. »

Herman Van Rompuy,
président du Conseil européen

« Dans la dimension des valeurs fondatrices de l'Union européenne, one parle trop peu de nos valeurs. On parle trop de nous intérêts. »

José Manuel Barrosa,
président de la Commission européenne

« L'esprit européen doit aussi être présent dans les décisions des responsables politiques au niveau national; ce n'est pas le moment de l'égoïsme national. »

Jean-Claude Juncker,
Premier ministre et
ministre d'État du Luxembourg

« L'Union européenne est unde affaire de cœur qu'il s'agit de siogner, de respecter, d'aimer. Les dirigeants européens doivent se montrer plus intergouvernementaux d'une façon communautaire »

Jaques Santer,
président du conseil d'administration
de la Fondation du Mérite européen,
ministre d'État honoraire et ancien
président de la Commission européenne

« L'Union européenne est un facteur essentiel dans l'expansion graduelle et pacifique de la démocratie. »

Bruno Turbang,
président du directoire de la
Fondation du Mérite européen

« L'Europe a une capacité d'union dans tous le domaines, également ceux de l'histoire, de l'humanisme, du social, de la culture, de l'art, des sciences et de sa jeunesse, pour sauver le bien-être, c'es sa revanche sur l'histoire »

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.