January 17, 2026, 1:35 p.mJan 17, 2026, 6:11 p.m
The former President of the European Central Bank, Mario Draghi, will be awarded the Charlemagne Prize 2026 for his historic contributions to European unification. The Charlemagne Prize Directorate explained its decision by honoring the former Italian head of government as a personality “who achieved great things for Europe in a targeted manner and with unshakable determination.”
Mario Draghi.Image: keystone
The International Charlemagne Prize in Aachen is considered the most important award for services to European unification. It is traditionally awarded on Ascension Day, this year on May 14th.
The message from Aachen: “Overcome the small-small”
“Mario Draghi saved the euro as president of the central bank – almost single-handedly when it was on the brink,” said the chairman of the Charlemagne Prize Directorate, Armin Laschet (CDU), to the German Press Agency. Draghi said in 2012 at the height of the euro crisis that the ECB would do “whatever it takes” to secure the common currency. “His words “Whatever it takes” are more relevant today than ever,” said Laschet. Draghi is therefore, in addition to his historical achievements, also highly topical.
With his Draghi report on Europe’s competitiveness, he presented exactly the recommendation for action that Europe now needs to strengthen its competitiveness. Because if Europe doesn’t want to become the plaything of other powers, it has to be economically strong – everything else depends on that. “That’s why “Whatever it takes” should be a guiding motto for the commission today,” explained Laschet. The message of the Charlemagne Prize Directorate is: “Overcome the small-small. Implement what Mario Draghi called for in his report.”
Draghi sees Europe threatened by internal and external enemies
The 78-year-old Draghi appeared “extremely grateful” for the honor in a video message. “This decision comes at a time when Europe has many enemies – perhaps more enemies than ever, both internal and external,” he said. In order to preserve the European Union, Europeans must stand closer together than ever, he warned. «We have to overcome our self-inflicted weaknesses. And we have to become stronger: militarily, economically and politically.”
The Prime Minister of North Rhine-Westphalia, Hendrik Wüst (CDU), called Draghi an outstanding European and worthy winner. As ECB President and Italian Prime Minister, Draghi stood for responsibility, cohesion and a competitive Europe, Wüst wrote on Platform X.
Adenauer and Churchill among first prize winners
The Charlemagne Prize was founded by citizens of Aachen shortly after the Second World War. It is named after Emperor Charlemagne, whose Frankish Empire stretched across large parts of Western Europe in the early Middle Ages and who is therefore sometimes referred to as the “Father of Europe”. Since last year, the Charlemagne Prize has been associated with prize money of one million euros, donated by a couple from Aachen. This money is intended to benefit pro-European projects.
The first winners included Chancellor Konrad Adenauer (1954) and former British Prime Minister Winston Churchill (1955). Last year the prize went to EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. The last Italian to receive the prize was the peace broker and founder of the Catholic Community of Sant’Egidio, Andrea Riccardi, in 2009. (hkl/sda/dpa)