International Masonic Association
Corporate brand
UnclaimedThe International Masonic Association was a Geneva-based federation of predominantly liberal and Continental Masonic obediences that operated from 1921 until its dissolution in 1950.
Last updated November 4, 2026
AI crawler reads
No AI crawler has read this profile yet.
Overview
The International Masonic Association, known in French as the Association maçonnique internationale and commonly abbreviated AMI, was an international federation of Masonic jurisdictions active from 1921 to 1950. It was headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland, where it was closely associated with the Grande Loge Suisse Alpina. The organization brought together Masonic obediences belonging primarily to the liberal or Continental European tradition, a current that differed institutionally and politically from the more conservative, Anglo-American regular Masonic system. The AMI emerged from earlier efforts to establish an international Masonic coordinating body. In 1889, the Grand Orient de France proposed an international federation. That project took a more concrete form after the 1902 International Masonic Congress in Geneva, which led to the creation of an international office for Masonic relations in Neuchâtel in 1903. The office was directed by Édouard Quartier-la-Tente, then Grand Master of the Grande Loge Suisse Alpina, but the disruption caused by the First World War forced it to stop operating. It was dissolved in 1920. A new organization was established at a Geneva convention in October 1921 under the presidency of Isaac Reverchon, Grand Master of the Grande Loge Suisse Alpina. Its stated purpose was to preserve and expand relations among Masonic grand lodges and to establish new international connections. The founding group included the Swiss, French, Belgian, Italian, Dutch, and French Masonic bodies, as well as the Grand Lodge of New York. Although the New York jurisdiction represented a different Masonic environment, most early participants were European obediences associated with liberal, secular, and politically active forms of Freemasonry. The association expanded during the 1920s and 1930s. Historical accounts indicate that it had 23 member obediences in 1923, including 14 from Europe, and approximately 30 members in 1924 after additional European and Latin American jurisdictions joined. Membership reached its reported high point in 1934 after the admission of further bodies, including several major Mexican lodges. Its network eventually extended across Belgium, Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia, France, Greece, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Spain, Switzerland, Turkey, Yugoslavia, Germany, Austria, and Italy, as well as numerous jurisdictions in the Caribbean and Latin America and the Philippines. The AMI was not merely a ceremonial or fraternal coordination mechanism. From the late 1920s, it became increasingly involved in political and ideological activity. Arthur Groussier, a leading figure of the Grand Orient de France, chaired the association from 1927 to 1930. During the 1930s, the organization helped coordinate responses by Continental Freemasonry to authoritarian and fascist movements. At a Brussels congress on 6 May 1933, it issued an appeal urging Masonic bodies to oppose National Socialism and to defend human liberty and dignity. The organization was also affected by state repression. Several member obediences were banned or suppressed by authoritarian governments, including Masonic bodies in Spain, Italy, Portugal, Germany, Poland, Czechoslovakia, Turkey, and Austria. During the Second World War, the AMI transferred its office from Geneva to Lisbon. It unsuccessfully campaigned for the British and American governments not to recognize Francisco Franco's Spanish regime and advocated rebuilding Spain on liberal constitutional or republican lines. Francoist authorities accused the association of participating in an international anti-patriotic conspiracy and of contributing to the Spanish Civil War, allegations reflecting the regime's broader hostility toward Freemasonry. After the war, the AMI's position became increasingly difficult. The United Grand Lodge of England, representing the influence of regular Anglo-American Freemasonry, pressed the Grande Loge Suisse Alpina to break its relations with the Continental obediences associated with the Grand Orient de France. Switzerland ultimately divided its relationships with the two Masonic currents and dissolved the International Masonic Association in 1950. The AMI therefore remains a historical example of inter-obediential Masonic diplomacy, liberal internationalism, and the political role of European Freemasonry between the two world wars.
History
The International Masonic Association developed from late nineteenth- and early twentieth-century attempts to create a permanent international structure for Masonic relations. The Grand Orient de France proposed an international Masonic federation in 1889. A further step was taken at an international congress held in Geneva in 1902, after which an international office for Masonic relations opened in Neuchâtel in 1903. Édouard Quartier-la-Tente, then Grand Master of the Grande Loge Suisse Alpina, directed the office. The First World War disrupted its work, and the office was dissolved in 1920. In October 1921, delegates from liberal and Continental Masonic obediences met in Geneva and founded the International Masonic Association. Isaac Reverchon, Grand Master of the Grande Loge Suisse Alpina, presided over the convention. The founding participants included the Swiss, French, Belgian, Italian, and Dutch obediences, together with the Grand Lodge of New York. The association sought to maintain existing relationships among grand lodges, deepen those relationships, and establish new ones. Its institutional center was Geneva, reflecting the importance of the Swiss obedience in its creation and administration. The AMI expanded quickly. Historical accounts describe 23 affiliated obediences in 1923, of which 14 were European. By 1924, seven further memberships had been recorded, including five from Latin America, taking the reported total to about 30. Between 1927 and 1934, eleven additional obediences joined, among them three large Mexican jurisdictions. The federation's membership covered a wide geographical area, although its intellectual and political center remained in Continental Europe. Its members included grand lodges and grand orients in Belgium, Bulgaria, France, Greece, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Switzerland, Yugoslavia, and other European countries, as well as bodies in the Caribbean, Latin America, the United States, and the Philippines. The organization was closely connected with the liberal Masonic current. Unlike regular Freemasonry associated with the United Grand Lodge of England and many Anglo-American jurisdictions, liberal Continental Freemasonry generally tolerated a broader range of philosophical and political positions and was more willing to engage in public affairs. This distinction shaped the AMI's identity and eventually contributed to its dissolution. From 1927 to 1930, Arthur Groussier chaired the association while serving as a leading official of the Grand Orient de France. During the 1930s, the AMI became a significant mechanism for political coordination among Continental Masonic organizations. Its Brussels congress of 6 May 1933 produced an appeal against the rise of National Socialism in Germany. The appeal called on lodges and grand lodges to defend human freedom and dignity, presenting opposition to authoritarianism as a shared Masonic responsibility. The association's members were increasingly vulnerable to state repression. Governments in several European countries outlawed or restricted Masonic organizations. The Spanish obediences were banned under Franco, while Masonic bodies in Italy, Portugal, Germany, Poland, Czechoslovakia, Turkey, and Austria also experienced state suppression or were forced to cease operating. These measures reduced the AMI's practical reach and made its international work more difficult. During the Second World War, the AMI transferred its office from Geneva to Lisbon. It continued political activity concerning Spain and unsuccessfully sought to persuade British and American governments not to recognize Francisco Franco's regime. The association supported reconstruction based on liberal principles, either through a constitutional monarchy associated with Juan de Borbón or through a republic. Francoist Spain portrayed the AMI as part of an international anti-patriotic conspiracy and blamed it for involvement in the Spanish Civil War. These accusations were part of the regime's broader anti-Masonic propaganda and should be understood as political allegations rather than established findings in the available reference material. After the war, the divide between regular and liberal Continental Freemasonry became decisive. The United Grand Lodge of England urged the Grande Loge Suisse Alpina to sever its connections with the Continental bodies dominated by the Grand Orient de France. The Swiss obedience ultimately split its relationships and dissolved the International Masonic Association in 1950. The AMI's legacy lies in its attempt to organize international Masonic cooperation, its role in connecting European and Latin American obediences, and its engagement with the political crises of the interwar and wartime periods.
- 1950
Dissolution
[1]The Grande Loge Suisse Alpina broke with the Continental Masonic network and the AMI was dissolved.
- 1939
Wartime office relocation
[1]During the Second World War, the association moved its office from Geneva to Lisbon.
- 1933
Brussels appeal against National Socialism
[1]The AMI called on Masonic organizations to defend freedom and human dignity against National Socialism.
- 1924
Latin American expansion
[1]New memberships, especially from Latin America, brought reported participation to approximately 30 obediences.
- 1923
Membership reaches 23 obediences
[1]The association was reported to include 23 obediences, including 14 from Europe.
- 1921
International Masonic Association founded
[1]A Geneva convention founded the AMI under the presidency of Isaac Reverchon.
- 1920
Predecessor office dissolved
[1]The earlier international Masonic relations office ceased its activities after wartime disruption and was dissolved.
- 1903
International office opens in Neuchâtel
[1]An international office for Masonic relations opened in Neuchâtel under Édouard Quartier-la-Tente.
- 1902
International Masonic Congress in Geneva
[1]A Geneva congress advanced the project of permanent international Masonic coordination.
- 1889
Proposal for an international Masonic federation
[1]The Grand Orient de France proposed creating an international federation of Masonic bodies.
Products and positioning
A transnational coordinating federation for liberal and Continental Masonic obediences, combining fraternal diplomacy with political advocacy for human liberty and opposition to authoritarian movements.
Product categories. International coordination among Masonic obediences · Inter-obediential congresses and diplomatic contacts · Political appeals concerning liberty, democracy, and opposition to authoritarianism · Representation and communication among affiliated grand lodges
Marketing campaigns
- 1939Diplomatic campaign concerning Francoist Spain
United Kingdom · United States · Spain
During the Second World War, the AMI sought to persuade British and American governments not to recognize Francisco Franco's Spanish State and advocated a liberal reconstruction of Spain.
Outcome. The effort was unsuccessful; the association's preferred constitutional or republican alternatives were not adopted by the governments involved.
- 1933Brussels appeal against National Socialism
Europe · International Masonic jurisdictions
At its Brussels congress, the AMI appealed to lodges and grand lodges worldwide to oppose the rise of National Socialism and to uphold human freedom and dignity.
Outcome. The appeal established the AMI as a visible political voice among Continental Masonic bodies, but it did not prevent the suppression of Masonic organizations by authoritarian governments.
Brand decisions
1950
Dissolution following Swiss realignmentOtherBackground
Postwar pressure from regular Anglo-American Freemasonry focused on the Grande Loge Suisse Alpina's relationship with Continental bodies associated with the Grand Orient de France.
Action taken
The Swiss obedience separated from the Continental network and dissolved the AMI.
Aftermath
The federation ceased to exist, ending its attempt to unite the two principal international currents of modern Freemasonry.
- United Grand Lodge of England — It had urged the Grande Loge Suisse Alpina to sever relations with the Continental Masonic bodies.
1939
Relocation of the association's office to LisbonStrategyBackground
The Second World War disrupted the association's Geneva-based operations and threatened communication among its members.
Action taken
The AMI moved its office from Geneva to Lisbon while continuing international political activity.
Aftermath
The relocation allowed the organization to continue operating during the war, although state repression and geopolitical division limited its effectiveness.
1921
Establishment of a permanent international federationStrategyBackground
The dissolution of the earlier international relations office left Masonic obediences without the proposed permanent coordinating structure.
Action taken
Delegates meeting in Geneva created the International Masonic Association to maintain and extend relations among grand lodges.
Aftermath
The new body became a principal international forum for liberal and Continental Masonic obediences.
Sources1 sources
Cite this profile: Cite the canonical profile. /brand-wiki/international-masonic-association · Editorial policy · How profiles are compiled