Sir Nicholas Winton, a British man who saved 669 children from the Nazis, was awarded the highest civilian honour in the Czech Republic on Tuesday.
Winton, now 105, was presented with the Order of the White Lion by the Czech president in a special ceremony at Prague Castle.
Winton, who has often been nicknamed “the British Schindler”, organised the transportation and settlement of 669 children over nine months before the second world war broke out in September 1939. Most of those he saved were Jewish children living in then-German-occupied Czechoslovakia whose families were later imprisoned or murdered in concentration camps.
Winton gave a speech during the ceremony. He said: “I want to thank you all for this enormous expression of thanks for something which happened to me a heck of a long time ago. I am delighted that so many of the children are still about and are here to thank me.
“England was the only country at that time willing to accept unaccompanied minors. I thank the British people for making room to accept them, and of course the enormous help given by so many of the Czechs who were at that time doing what they could to fight the Germans and to try to get the children out.”
In the same ceremony, the Order of the White Lion was also bestowed on Sir Winston Churchill, given in memoriam to his grandson Nicholas Soames. They are the only British citizens to receive the award, after Margaret Thatcher and the Queen. Presenting the award, the Czech President, Milos Zeman said: “It is a great pleasure to confer this award upon two great personalities of the UK. I am only ashamed it has been awarded so late – but better late than never. Congratulations Sir Winton. This is our highest honour; we cannot do one higher.”
The ceremony was attended by many of the people that Winton saved, as well as schoolchildren from the Basic School of Sir Nicholas Winton, named after him, in Kunzak, Czech Republic.
Winton and his family were flown out on a special plane courtesy of the Czech government so that he could be taken to receive the award and return back the same day for his normal bedtime.
