Germany’s former leader Angela Merkel is to be awarded the country’s highest order of merit despite criticism over her legacy.

Merkel will be presented with the honour by the president, Frank-Walter Steinmeier, in Berlin on Monday evening in recognition of her contribution to German political life at an event to be attended by her political allies, including the current chancellor, Olaf Scholz, the former national football coach Jürgen Klinsmann and family and friends.

The Großkreuz, or “large cross”, is the most important order of its kind. It has been received by two previous chancellors: Konrad Adenauer in 1954 and Helmut Kohl in 1998.

But some critics have said the award has come too close to the end of Merkel’s 16-year chancellorship to allow an assessment of her legacy. Others have called it problematic that her actions arguably contributed to the problems Germany – and Europe – is now facing.

Merkel’s decisions to withdraw Germany from nuclear power and to try to forge a working relationship with Moscow including encouraging energy dependency on it – now seen by most Germans as a huge mistake – are both under heavy scrutiny given Russia’s war against Ukraine.

Allies of Merkel have defended her record, pointing out her attempts to keep Germany and Europe on an even keel during a period of considerable upheaval.

Among her achievements during her time in office between 2005 and 2021, they count her role in tackling the European debt crisis, turmoil in the banking sector and the refugee crisis.

Steinmeier has come under particular criticism and faced accusations he is trying to save his reputation, which was tarnished over the close ties he sought with Russian politicians, including Sergei Lavrov, his then counterpart in Moscow, when he served as foreign minister under Merkel.

Some of the sharpest criticism in the run-up to the ceremony has come from within the ranks of Merkel’s party, the Christian Democratic Union (CDU).

Carsten Linnemann, the deputy chair of the CDU, told German breakfast television that while it was clear Merkel had contributed greatly to Germany, “especially internationally”, she had also “made mistakes, even flagrant ones”.

In particular he cited her decision to withdraw Germany from nuclear energy after the Fukushima disaster of 2011 as “a mistake in the way it was carried out”, because he said there had been little thought as to how it could be achieved.

“There was no thought as to how exactly we wanted to reasonably become self-sufficient regarding our energy supplies,” he said, in reference to Germany’s dependence on Russian gas and lack of adequately developed alternative energy supplies.

Linnemann also called Merkel’s refugee politics a “blatant failure”, because, he said “we did not protect the borders, which is something that needs to be discussed as openly as the positive aspects”.

Criticism also came from within the leadership ranks of the pro-business FDP and the far-left Die Linke. In contrast, the party leaders of her effective rivals the Social Democrats and the Greens, Saskia Esken and Omid Nouripour, voiced their praise for her and their support for the decision to reward her.

Esken told the news portal RND: “In particular I value her diplomatic skill and her empathic wisdom with which she repeatedly managed to forge viable coalitions and compromises on the national as well as the international stage.”

Nouripour said Merkel had shaped Germany “like only few others have done”. He said it was not necessary “to be in agreement with everything she did in order to recognise her great service”.

Merkel has rarely been seen in public since her time in office ended in December 2021. Last year she condemned Russia’s war in Ukraine but emphasised her diplomatic efforts to avert the conflict, saying “I therefore will not apologise”, when asked if she would do so.

She is writing a book about her time in office with her longstanding adviser, Beate Baumann, which is due for publication in autumn 2024 simultaneously in Germany, North America and the UK.