| |
|
|
|
|
|
||
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
| |||||
|
|||||
|
|||||
|
The Week in Germany: Current Affairs December 15, 2006 Heavy Medal: Charlemagne Prize to be Awarded to Top EU Diplomat Javier Solana in Historic Aachen
The next International Charlemagne Prize of Aachen, one of Germany's most prestigious public service awards, will go to Javier Solana, the European Union's chief foreign policy official often referred to in transatlantic diplomatic circles as "Washington's direct hotline to Brussels". A round golden medaillon and 5,000 euros ($6,638) will be awarded to Solana on May 17 in Aachen, which lies at the crossroads of Europe on Germany's border with Belgium. The 64-year-old Spaniard will be honored for his work in promoting peace and European unity.
"Uniting Europe is extremely hard work," Aachen Mayor Juergen Linden said on Saturday. In an initial response, Solana said he valued the award more than a Nobel Prize and it was a great honor to himself and his family. The popular EU foreign policy chief is not the first member of his family to receive the award. It went in 1973 to his great-uncle, the Spanish philosopher and sociologist Don Salvador de Madariaga. The Charlemagne Prize was created in 1949 to honor service to European unity. Jean-Claude Juncker, prime minister of Luxembourg, received the 2006 award. Other past recipients include UK Prime Minister Tony Blair, former US President Bill Clinton, former German Chancellor Helmut Kohl, together with former French President François Mitterand, and the euro - marking the first time the prize was not conferred upon a leading personality, but upon the product of a political decision. Aachen once served as the official seat of Charlemagne, who was crowned as the first emperor of the Holy Roman Empire in 800 AD. He was initially drawn to Aachen because of its famous hot springs, believed to have healing powers.
The city is filled with beautiful fountains, attesting to its history as a spa town. And this particular TWIG editor can attest to the regal splendor of Aachen's crown jewels, many covered in pure gold studded with dazzling, multi-colored, precious stones. Some are still used in official ceremonies to this very day. These jewels, along with eerily haunting religious relics, are housed in Aachen's Cathedral Treasury, regarded as the most important ecclesiastical treasury north of the Alps. Guided tours of the town hall and the unusual Aachen Cathedral, where
a long line of emperors were crowned, round out a visit to Aachen, also
famous for its university, cozy old town squares and Printen, a chewy
type of seasonal spice cookie similar to Lebkuchen. This charming city
steeped in regal history is easily accessible by train from nearby Cologne
or Brussels. (TWIG, dpa) Links:
|
|
More from Germany.info  Newsletters
 Printer-Friendly
Page
Email This Article |
||
|
|||||
|
|||||
