GENEVA, JANUARY 17 – For security reasons and in compliance with binding MFA regulations, access to the external perimeter and to the Italian Mission in Geneva Offices can only take place by previous appointment with the Headquarters staff (for relevant contacts, see here), to be agreed at least 24 hours in advance.
Guests will be welcomed at the entrance of the Chancery by their contact person, in the presence of the Arma dei Carabinieri Military Officer on duty or other authorized member of the staff, and must present a valid identity document and sign the visitor access register. Before entering the Chancery Offices, the guest must also deposit any mobile phone devices in the appropriate security containers.
These measures also apply with regard to the access of journalists and press and media, who must agree their appointment in writing and well in advance with the Headquarters staff, in order to ensure the necessary prior coordination with the Ministerial Offices in charge for for institutional communication. Unless expressly authorized, for security reasons, video footage inside and in the outer perimeter of the Permanent Mission will not be permitted.
The historic building in which the Permanent Mission of Italy is hosted, as well as the street in which it is located, takes its name from the Empress Josephine, Napoleon’s first wife, who resided there for some years starting in 1811 together with his daughter Hortense.
The construction of the building seems to date back to the fourteenth century, while news dating back to 1538 inform that the property was initially much larger than it is currently: to the north it bordered on Dupuy’s property (later called “Reposoir des Picted”); to the south and west it was bounded by the road from Pregny to Lake Geneva (Chemin de l’Impèratrice), to the east by the Geneva-Versoix road (Route Suisse). It included a house with a barn, stables, attic, garden, vineyards and lawns.
The renovation of the building in its present form took place in the 1700s. In 1811, at the time of purchase by the Empress Josephine, the property included a castle, three minor buildings, a courtyard, terraced gardens, rows of trees, orchards, meadows, fields, vineyards, and even a small port. Josephine lived there only a few years, then left the building to her daughter, who sold it in 1817.
In 1954 the building became the property of the City of Geneva and was classified as a historical monument. Currently, it hosts the Permanent Representation of Italy to International Organizations and the Permanent Representation of Italy at the Disarmament Conference. (@OnuItalia)
