Professional genealogy in France and Europe: welcome to Gefrance. Reconnect with your roots and secure your heritage through 30 years of expert archival research across the continent and former colonies.
Since 1995, Philippe Chapelin has been guiding descendants of French, Swiss, and European immigrants in their quest to rediscover their ancestry. As an expert in professional genealogy in France, his work begins where digital databases end: by immersing himself in original French, Swiss, and Colombian archives to reconstruct family journeys over several centuries.
Our expertise covers a wide range of specialized services, including international heir searches, comprehensive family tree reconstruction, and property and real estate history research. Whether you are looking for lost family members or need to resolve a complex cross-border inheritance, we provide clear, thoroughly documented, and legally usable results for notaries and legal professionals worldwide.
Understanding why your ancestors emigrated or tracing the history of a family estate requires a deep cross-analysis of notary deeds, military records, and colonial civil status. At Gefrance, every project in archival research in France is handled with the same scientific rigor and personalized care, allowing you to reconnect with your heritage—wherever your family’s journey began.
The purpose of this option is to carry out a complete study of a last name in France.
This option will allow you to locate a family if it is of French origin and if you don’t know from which region it comes.
This chapter is dedicated to the ancestry of French immigrants.
The genealogical search will be complemented by studies in more specialized sources.
We investigate the origin and history of a property or land for informational or business purposes.
Your company has a history, we help you rebuild it from its foundation.
Philippe Chapelin, French genealogist, explores the family history and heritage of Professor Didier Raoult. Discover how genealogical research unveils the cultural roots and legacy of one of France’s most prominent and debated medical figures
Le Dossier du Jour • ICI Saint-Étienne Family Secrets & Genealogy: The Interview In the
Emmanuel Todd: In the Footsteps of a Cultural Heir by Philippe Chapelin.
Explore how historian Emmanuel Todd developed his empirical approach by tracing his family lineage. From the industrial rise of the Nizan family to the naval traditions of the Métour branch in Lorient, discover a complex intellectual heritage reconstructed through genealogical expertise.
Each year, I personally handle many cases for families and legal professionals who wish to rediscover their roots or resolve complex cross-border successions.
My work keeps me in constant contact with notaries, lawyers and families across France, Switzerland and Colombia. What drives me is the ability to combine deep archival research with practical, concrete solutions.
— Philippe Chapelin —
