Pádraic MacKernan, Ireland's outgoing Ambassador to Paris, was yesterday awarded the rank of Grand Officier de l'Ordre National de Mérite by the secretary general of the French foreign ministry, Jean-Pierre Lafon.
Mr MacKernan can now wear the blue, yellow and white ribbon of the order in the lapel of his jacket, a subtle indication in France that one is a person of importance.
The award was made at a farewell luncheon in the ministry overlooking the Seine and the Place de la Concorde.
The ambassador's wife Caitríona, Michel Déon, a French writer who lives in Co Galway, Helen Carey, the director of the Irish Cultural Centre, and Jacques Andréani, the former French ambassador to Washington and a friend of the MacKernans, were among the guests.
Mr MacKernan is retiring after nearly four years as Ambassador to Paris. He served earlier as secretary general of the Irish Department of Foreign Affairs and as ambassador to Washington and the EU.
Mr Lafon said it was a coincidence that the award and luncheon took place the day after France rejected the European constitutional treaty.
"We nonetheless have a message of hope for the future of Europe," the French diplomat said. "Europe has been 50 years in the making and it will take 50 more years. There will obviously be ups and downs."
The Irish Ambassador said he felt confident that France's crisis over the constitutional treaty would pass.
"Ireland owes a great deal to Europe and to France. Our high standard of living and very low unemployment continue to be tied to the European project. This morning, our Government announced there will be a referendum in Ireland."
Mr MacKernan recalled that Gen Charles de Gaulle's Irish grandmother wrote a biography of Daniel O'Connell, and that "France protected many Irish political refugees during the dark period of our history".
