History of the Women's Grand Lodge of Switzerland
On the 26 of April 1964 the Women's Grand
Lodge of France brought Masonic Light to Switzerland thanks to 11 women
Masons who founded a women's lodge in Geneva. A second lodge was opened
in 1970 in Neuchâtel.
In 1972, Swiss women Masons founded two independent lodges in Geneva and Lausanne and a third in 1974, again in Geneva. In 1976 these three lodges created and constituted the obedience entitled "Women's Grand Lodge of Switzerland – Confederation of Lodges and Rites".
In 1977 and 1981 two more lodges were opened under the aegis of the Women's Grand Lodge of France, and four under that of the Women's Grand Lodge of Switzerland, one in 1977, one in 1982 and two in 1983.
On the 16 of June 1985, the four Swiss Lodges of the Women's Grand Lodge of France became independent and formed the short-lived Women's Grand Lodge of Helvetia.
On the 29 of June 1985 all the women's lodges on Swiss territory, four belonging to the Women's Grand Lodge of Helvetia (100 members) and seven to the Women's Grand Lodge of Switzerland (130 members) united to form a new single and united Swiss women's obedience entitled:
WOMEN'S GRAND LODGE OF SWITZERLAND
There were at that point 230 women Freemasons in the French- and German-speaking parts of the country. Today, Women's Freemasonry is present throughout Switzerland with 21 lodges and about 400 members, who meet regularly at Grand Lodge assemblies, which encourage mutual enrichment of the Brethren and their particular cultures.
From the international point of view, since 1987 the Women's Grand Lodge of Switzerland has been a member of the International Liaison Centre of Women's Masonry (CLIMAF) whose members are the Women's Grand Lodges. Our obedience is recognised by all the other national obediences as a bona fide adogmatic masonic authority, and it participates in all international masonic gatherings.