I need to ask a question regarding my great grand, about a year ago my son decided to build our family tree, we are Mexicans and all of this started because my son, he always had this curiosity of why my mother and grand mother had these non typical Mexican dishes of which we all enjoyed while they were alive, and why they both knew some words in German. So had to share a lot of family history which it has always been irrelevant for them to know. I have swiss ancestry, along with the usual suspects Mexican and Spanish.
Well I never meet my great grand dad, but according to my great grand mother which was alive when I remeber she told is stories to us about him. Anyhow All I knew my gg-father was a Mexican/Swiss merchant and got killed during the Mexican Revolution leaving my grand mother fatherless at age of 13.
Well my sons after a year discovered all the stories were half true. Althought it was super hard for him to built the tree. I have learned so much about my 2nd great grand aswell, and how I know I understand many of things in my moms side.
He has so much proof, records, evidence even contacted the cantons (I learned im an appenzeller of origin), swiss federal archives and found out and was adviced to tell me to do citizenship restoration tru Article 27 Naturalization act. Based on the merits that my great grand father died at 45 and and left my grandmother at age of 13 and her mother at will and never registered her in her canton switzerland due the death and on going unstable Mexico of that era (1840-1920), Cantoral archives provided him with proof that my great grand father was registered as a swiss citizen thanks for my 2nd great grand father. I was born in 1947.
Please advice!
I want to connect with my past of which has been lost because my great grand dad died young!
If “connect with the past” means getting Swiss nationality, I would think it would be very difficult, even impossible, after 4 generations. Moreover, back then nationality passed only via the paternal line, so your grandmother could not transfer it further on, although I am not sure if they are exceptions. In any case, I think it is way too far in the past to do something. The family line is not enough for Swiss citizenship.
Actually, what you describe is not that rare, Switzerland was not always a rich country and in the 1880s almost 1/3 of the working male population left for a better life, a large number ended up in north and south america, starting new lives.
But you should ask directly the Swiss embassy in Mexico, they will be able to advise.
PS: personally, I understand article 27 to apply only to children of registered Swiss (ie 1 generation back, whose parents forgot to declare them), not 4 generations… plus there are some important conditions, speaking the language + ties to Switzerland, regular visits, sometimes residence in Switzerland for 3 years, contact with swiss people. But you have nothing to lose by asking.
There were a couple of articles last week at the Watson (watson.ch), in German, as it seems that there were also a group of Argentinian nationals with 4th to 5th generation Swiss roots that wanted to regain Swiss nationality. For what I understood from the article, the Swiss consulate had informed them that there was no framework for those types of naturalizations, (a very neutral way of saying, sorry but no) – so they had submitted a request to some group ( I believe Argentinians naturalized Swiss) to request a modification of the law in Switzerland.