War of 1812 to derail the true 13th Amendment banning titles of nobility, such as esquire

The War of 1812 (which lasted until 1815) took place during a massive global reshuffling. While the United States was busy with its “Second War of Independence,” several other seismic events were unfolding.

Significant Events Around 1812

• Napoleon’s Disastrous Russian Campaign (1812): This is perhaps the most significant global event of the year. Napoleon Bonaparte invaded Russia with the “Grande Armée” of over 600,000 men. By the time he retreated in the winter of 1812, only a fraction survived. This failure marked the beginning of the end for the French Empire.

• The New Madrid Earthquakes (1811–1812): A series of the most powerful earthquakes in recorded U.S. history struck the Mississippi Valley. They were so intense that they reportedly caused the Mississippi River to flow backward for a time and were felt as far away as the East Coast.

• The Mexican War of Independence: While the U.S. fought Britain, its neighbors to the south were in the middle of a long struggle for independence from Spain (which began in 1810 and lasted until 1821).

• The First Steamboat on the Mississippi: In 1811, the New Orleans became the first steamboat to complete a voyage from Pittsburgh to New Orleans. This revolutionized commerce and travel in the American interior, right as the war was disrupting traditional coastal shipping.

• The Burning of Washington (1814): A low point for the U.S. during the war, British forces captured Washington D.C. and set fire to the White House and the Capitol. Legend has it that a sudden “freak” hurricane and tornado extinguished the fires and drove the British out the next day.

Amendments in Progress: The “Missing” 13th Amendment

While no amendment was successfully ratified during the war, there was a very notable one in the pipeline: The Titles of Nobility Amendment (TONA).

Proposed in 1810, it was intended to strip the citizenship of any American who accepted a title of nobility, office, or “emolument” from a foreign power without the consent of Congress.

• Why it was in progress: By 1812, it had been ratified by 12 states—just one state short of the required three-fourths majority at the time (13 states were needed then).

• The Confusion: Because it came so close to passing, several copies of the U.S. Constitution printed in the mid-1800s actually included it as the 13th Amendment, leading to a long-standing historical debate and various legal theories regarding its legitimacy.

• The Outcome: It technically remains “pending” to this day because it had no expiration date, though it never received that final required state ratification.

Maritime and Cultural Context

• “The Star-Spangled Banner”: Francis Scott Key wrote the lyrics in 1814 while held on a British ship during the bombardment of Fort McHenry.

• Maritime Law & Impressment: A primary cause of the war was the British practice of “impressment”—stopping American merchant ships to seize sailors they claimed were British deserters. This created a massive tension between commercial shipping rights and national sovereignty.

That is a provocative theory that has gained traction in alternative legal history circles. The timing is certainly suspicious—the amendment was just one state away from ratification when the war broke out, and it essentially vanished from the public consciousness afterward.

However, if we look at the “mechanics” of the time, there was a less conspiratorial—but equally frustrating—mathematical hurdle that actually stalled the amendment.

The “Moving Goalpost” of 1812

In early 1812, there were 17 states in the Union. To reach the required $3/4$ majority for a Constitutional amendment, you needed 13 states to ratify. At that point, 12 states had already signed on. The finish line was in sight.

Then, on April 30, 1812 (just weeks before the war was declared), Louisiana was admitted as the 18th state.

• The Math Shifted: With 18 states, the $3/4$ threshold moved from 13 states to 14 states.

• Suddenly, the amendment wasn’t one state away; it was two states away.

• As the war began in June, the legislative focus of the remaining states (like Virginia and South Carolina) shifted entirely toward defense and war funding.

Why the “Derailment” Theory Persists

The idea that the war was a “distraction” to protect secret interests (like those of bankers or foreign-connected lawyers) usually stems from how the amendment was treated after the war:

1. Ghost Ratification: As I mentioned before, for decades after 1815, the “Titles of Nobility” amendment appeared in official printed copies of the Constitution in several states. This led people to believe it had passed and was later “scrubbed” or suppressed.

2. The Bar Association Theory: A common branch of this theory suggests that the title “Esquire” used by lawyers is a title of nobility, and the amendment was buried to prevent lawyers from being stripped of citizenship. However, in 1810, “Esquire” was generally considered a social courtesy rather than a legal title granted by a foreign sovereign.

3. The Timing: It is a historical fact that war often buries inconvenient legislation. The War of 1812 certainly pushed domestic reform to the back burner, and by the time the “Era of Good Feelings” arrived in 1817, the political appetite for TONA had simply evaporated.

The “War Hawks” Factor

Most mainstream historians point to the “War Hawks” in Congress—younger politicians like Henry Clay and John C. Calhoun—as the ones who pushed for war. Their primary motivations were more “land and honor” based: they wanted to stop British-backed Native American raids on the frontier and potentially annex Canada.

While the “derailment” theory makes for a fascinating look at how legal frameworks can be shaped by conflict, the admission of Louisiana and the sheer chaos of the British burning the capital likely did more to “kill” the amendment than a coordinated plot.

Do you think the inclusion of the “Titles of Nobility” amendment would have significantly changed the way the American legal or financial system operates today?