Papers Relating to the Foreign Relations of the United States, With the Annual Message of the President, Transmitted to Congress, December 4, 1893

Mr. Vignaud to Mr. Gresham.

Embassy of the United States,
Paris, August 22, 1893. (Received September 4.)

No. 47.]

Sir: In his No. 29 of July 16, 1889, printed in the Foreign Relations for 1890, p. 276, Mr. Reid gave an account of the French nationality law of June 26, 1889, which introduced quite a change in the principle upon which French citizenship was founded, and in my No. 513 of April 7, 1892, I explained the construction given to an essential part of this law by the French supreme court (cour de cassation).

Previous to the enactment of that law, parentage (jus sanguinis) was the only source of French natural citizenship; that is to say, a man was French, no matter where he was born, if he was of French parentage, while those, on the other hand, born in France of foreign parentage could preserve the foreign status from generation to generation. The law of 1889 did not alter the first point, but it declared that those born in France would lose the privilege of preserving their foreign status after the first generation. The question then arose whether the children of a father born abroad and of a mother born in France would be considered as being of the first generation or of the second. The supreme court decided that they were of the second generation, and therefore, native-born French, with no right to disclaim French citizenship (see my No. 513 above referred to).

This decision gave rise to so many complaints on the part of the English and the Belgians that the French Government resolved to yield the point. The British embassy was unofficially informed that a bill would be introduced in the Chamber to modify the law, and that in the meantime the military authorities would abstain from calling those, situated in the case above mentioned, to perform military service.

In execution of this promise, a law has just been enacted (July 22, 1893), which provides that hereafter children born in France of a mother also born there shall have the privilege of disclaiming French nationality if the father is a foreigner born abroad. I inclose herewith a copy of the law with a translation of the principal clauses.

I have, etc.,

Henry Vignaud,
Chargé d’Affaires ad interim.

[Inclosure in No. 47.]

Principal clauses of the law of July 22, 1893, respecting French nationality.

Article 1 amends article 8, paragraph 3, of the civil code, in the following manner: “Any person born in France of foreign parents, one of which was also born there, is French except that in the year following his majority he may disclaim his French status by complying with the requirements of paragraph 4, if it is the mother who was born in France.”

Paragraph 4, here referred to, remains unaltered. It provides that the disclaimer must show that he is considered by the government of the country to which he claims to belong, as a citizen of that country.

Article 2 accords a delay of one year to those who desire to disclaim French status in accordance with the terms of the amended paragraph 3.

Article 3 amends article 9 of the civil code with reference to the legal formalities for claiming French status.