Medals for the Unaccountable: The Gilded Afterlife of Angela Merkel

The political class has always enjoyed handing out medals to its own, but the post-chancellorship shower of accolades for Angela Merkel reaches an almost satirical level. On average, every three months since stepping down in 2021, the former German chancellor has collected another sash, badge, or academic title. Eighteen awards in five years create a gilded record—one that stands in stark, cynical contrast to the actual ledger of her sixteen years in power.

Consider the praise heaped upon her migration policy. The UN Refugee Agency decorated her with the Nansen Refugee Award in October 2022 for welcoming more than 1.2 million migrants during 2015 and 2016. UNESCO followed suit in early 2023 with the Félix Houphouët-Boigny Peace Prize in Ivory Coast. High-ranking international figures praised her moral courage and leadership. Yet the complete collapse of effective border controls, the severe strain placed on municipal budgets and social systems, and the lasting security issues that followed in Germany were conveniently left off the ceremonial programs.

At home, the institutional apparatus has been equally eager to validate itself through Merkel. In April 2023, Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier bestowed upon her the Grand Cross of the Order of Merit in a special design—a distinction previously granted only to Konrad Adenauer and Helmut Kohl. Regional politicians across the spectrum joined the chorus. In Baden-Württemberg, Premier Winfried Kretschmann handed her the Staufer Medal in Gold specifically for her pandemic management, celebrating a period of severe lockdowns and daily restrictions that still lack thorough public accounting. In Bavaria, Markus Söder rewarded her sheer political endurance, while Mecklenburg-Vorpommern’s Manuela Schwesig praised regional infrastructure projects.

The European institutional machinery has shown similar devotion. The European Parliament presented her with the European Order of Merit, turning a blind eye to the lingering fiscal liabilities, growing debt, and defense deficits that accrued during her tenure. Honorary doctorates from Sciences Po in Paris, Cambridge, the Catholic University of Portugal in Lisbon, and the Weizmann Institute flowed in naturally, accompanied by laudatory speeches from establishment figures like European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde.

With the International Mendelssohn Prize awaiting her in Leipzig, the pattern is unmistakable. While ordinary citizens contend with decaying infrastructure, economic stagnation, and security concerns, the governing caste remains busily engaged in decorating its own members.

Written by Martina Kirchner martina.kirchner@alpineweekly.com