When Eva Fort Johnson Robinson moved to the United States as a small child she never thought she’d someday receive one of her native country’s most significant awards.

But last month the Butler woman received the highest honor bestowed to commoners of Denmark for her service as the Danish Consul to Pittsburgh.

Robinson, 66, was named a First Degree Knight of the Order of Dannebrog Jan. 1.

“This is not something that is just handed out on a whim,” Robinson said. “I’m honored. I’m excited. I wish my parents were here to see it.”

Although honorees are appointed by Denmark’s Queen Margrethe II, Robinson received the Knight’s Cross from the Danish ambassador at the country’s Washington, D.C., embassy last month.

The First Degree Knight of the Order of Dannebrog was established in 1671 as part of the Royal Order of Chivalry. It is used as an order of merit for Danish citizens who have served the country in some capacity, according to information from Denmark’s website.

Robinson said she received news of the honor through an e-mail and it took a bit for the gravity of the honor to sink in.

“I thought, ‘Wow,’” she recalled last week from her home off Duffy Road. “That was my first thought, then I became more excited.”

It has been 300 years since anyone from her family received a knighthood, something that pleased and excited relatives both in the United States and in Denmark, according to Robinson.

“Our grandmother would be absolutely astonished at this,” she said.

The Knight’s Cross is Robinson’s alone. When she dies, it must be returned to Denmark and cannot be passed down to a relative.

The Dannebrog is the Danish flag, Robinson said, one of the oldest national flags in the world.

“It was sent down through the heavens and it came floating down,” Robinson said of the legend of the flag.

Robinson became a consul in 2006.

When the former Danish consul moved to Florida, she urged Robinson to apply for the post, a process that took almost a year.

After sending in applications and paperwork, she was interviewed by the Danish government, an interview that was conducted in Danish and then involved extensive background checks by the United States’ State Department.

Consuls are private citizens acting on behalf of a foreign government, said Jean-Pierre Collet, president of the Consular Association of Pittsburgh and a former consul for France.

The consuls represent their countries in major cities that do not have a Consulate General.

“(The Consulate Generals) cannot handle a huge territory, so that’s why they appoint citizens to do the work and keep in touch,” Collet said.

Robinson represents Danes in Western Pennsylvania. She can assist with obtaining passports and birth and marriage certificates and can also act as an interpreter.

“Anything related to Denmark can be handled by Mrs. Robinson,” Collet said.

There are 15 active consuls in Pittsburgh from countries such as Austria, Germany, Oman, Poland and Ireland, among others. All the consuls are volunteers, with many holding other jobs in addition to their consular duties, Collet said.

Robinson’s next project is regaining her Danish citizenship.

People who have received the Knight’s Cross can be granted an audience with the queen, but they must be Danish citizens.

Robinson moved to the United States from Denmark in 1957, and the family settled in Butler in 1961. She went on to graduate from Butler High School in 1968 and became an American citizen at 18.

With Denmark voting to allow dual citizenship last year, Robinson began the process to become a Danish citizen once again.

But the process is long, the Butler woman said, with country officials requiring her to prove not just her Danish birth, but that of her parents.

Meanwhile, she is enjoying the honor she has been given from her native country.

“A Knight of Denmark sitting in Butler,” she said.