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Duchess of Baltimore
by Steve Payne and
Mike Ulkowski
 Author
says: what if the Titles of Nobility clause had been adopted before the
Louisiana Purchase? Please note that the opinions expressed in this post do
not necessarily reflect the views of the author(s).
On March 8th 1803,
because the proposed marriage of Jerome Bonaparte and the "Duchess of
Baltimore" Betsy Patterson of Maryland would confer an illegal Title of
Nobility on a US Citizen the constitution temporarily halted the Federal
Government from purchasing the Louisiana Territory.
Matters were further complicated when their child Jerome Napoleon
Bonaparte born on July 7, 1805 received aristocratic recognition from
France in addition to gaining U.S. citizenship through his American-born
mother.
Nevertheless, for different reasons both the French and US Governments
needed the Purchase to go ahead.
And so Napoleon petitioned Pope Pius VII to annul their marriage,
whilst Representative Nathaniel Macon of North Carolina drafted a
constitutional amendment that would prevent US citizens from holding a
foreign title of nobility.
Ultimately, the Pope refused to comply, and a constitutional amendment was
indeed required prior to the completion of the Purchase.
Author
says to view guest historian's comments on this post please visit the
Today in Alternate History web site.
Steve Payne, Editor of
Today in Alternate History, a Daily Updating Blog of Important Events In
History That Never Occurred Today. Follow us on
Facebook,
Squidoo, Myspace and
Twitter.
Imagine what would be, if history had occurred a bit
differently. Who says it didn't, somewhere? These fictional news items
explore that possibility. Possibilities such as America becoming a Marxist
superpower, aliens influencing human history in the 18th century and Teddy
Roosevelt winning his 3rd term as president abound in this interesting
fictional blog.
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