> I had not known about J. Patsalls usage of Natural Born Citizen. YES, and two years before the American Revolution in 1776. Slowly, and with many a backward glance at traditional ideas, Americans began to argue that when "Subjects" became "Citizens", they gained the right to choose their allegiance, hence they began calling themselves “citizens” instead of “subjects”. British courts and public officials resisted this innovation. They could not deny that the former colonies became sovereign, independent states and that they were no longer bound as political communities to the mother country. Parliament itself had authorized the king to make peace by a statute of 1782, and the final Treaty of Paris acknowledging the sovereignty of the new states could not be disputed. Yet the British could challenge the legitimacy of the revolutionary governments and laws between 1776 and 1783, and they would continue to question the effects of independence on the legal status of the American antenati. |
“Yet the British could challenge the legitimacy of the revolutionary governments and laws between 1776 and 1783, and they would continue to question the effects of independence on the legal status of the American antenati.”
And, let us not forget about the War of 1812. Using Blackhole’s*** Common Laws concerning “natural born subjects,” England thought it was their right to conscript United States’ citizens into their military.
P.S. - RE: “antenati.” -— Great word! I’ll file it my memory-bank for later usage.
Cheers
***I’ve been using the term “Blackwell” to describe Blackstone, but someone on this thread used the term “Blackhole” and I loved it! So, I’m cribbing it. Sorry that I have yet to go back through all the comments and attribute this stroke of brilliance to the original author. I’ll correct that in the future.