On november 23rd, at the French Embassy to Belarus, by decree of the President of the Republic of France, Jacques Chirac, card. Kazimierz Swiatek will be bestowed with the title of knight commander of the Order of the Legion of Honour. The cardinal, who in the eyes of the French embodies the last 70 years’ history of the Belarusian people, is the first Belarusian citizens to be bestowed such honour. The order of knighthood of the Legion of Honour was founded by Napoleon Bonaparte in 1802. The honour of the Order was also conferred to Gustave Eiffel, the designer of the Eiffel Tower in Paris, and on 11th May 1998 to card. Joseph Ratzinger, who is now Pope Benedict XVI.
