On 13 July 2020, the Consul General of Hungary to Kraków Prof. Adrienne Körmendy was presented with the Plus ratio quam vis medal by the Rector of the Jagiellonian University Prof. Wojciech Nowak during a special session of the JU Senate in the historic Aula of Collegium Maius.
The Jagiellonian University honoured Prof. Adrienne Körmendy in recognition of her contribution to strengthening friendly relations between Poland and Hungary, based on mutual respect, promoting Polish history and culture in Hungary, as well as running a number of events and projects in collaboration with the Jagiellonian University, including an exhibition accompanying the World Youth Day in Kraków in 2016.
The laudatory speech was delivered by the Vice-Dean of the JU Faculty of History Prof. Stanisław Sroka, who briefly presented the scholarly achievements of the laureate as well as her cultural and diplomatic activity, which has resulted in cementing the Polish-Hungarian friendship and partnership.
The traditional Latin summary of the laureatte's achievements was read by the Dean of the JU Faculty of History Prof. Jan Święch.
Expressing her gratitude for the award, Prof. Adrienne Körmendy paid tribute to the late Prof. Jerzy Wyrozumski, an eminent historian of the Middle Ages, the JU Vice-Rector in 1987-1990, stressing his role in enhancing collaboration between the Polish and Hungarian academia. In her address, she also pointed to the role of Hungary as a country through which the cultural influences from Italy and France spread to Poland in the fourteenth century, inspiring King Casimir the Great to establish the Jagiellonian University. Referring the name of the medal (Latin: ‘reason before force’), which is the official motto of the Jagiellonian University, the Consul remarked that it also captures the very essence of diplomatic service.
