Also known as: antenati · born before
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
A person born before a specified political event that affects the person's political rights. The designation commonly identifies individuals born before the Declaration of Independence whose allegiance and citizenship rights were determined by the timing of their birth relative to the founding of the United States.
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Alfred Ashford, born in London in 1765, claimed citizenship rights in the new United States after the Revolution. Because he was antenatus relative to the Declaration of Independence, his prior allegiance to the Crown was held to disqualify him from automatic citizenship, so his estate passed to his daughter who was born postnatus.
A British subject born antenatus in New York in 1774 sought to inherit land from a Loyalist relative. The court ruled that his pre-Declaration birth fixed his allegiance to the Crown, preventing him from taking title under state statutes that limited devises to citizens.
A claimant born antenatus in Philadelphia in 1770 petitioned for recognition as a U.S. citizen to recover confiscated property. Because his birth preceded the political event that created American allegiance, the tribunal denied automatic citizenship and required separate naturalization.
The term identifies a person born before the Declaration of Independence whose political rights and allegiance were fixed by birth before the founding event.
The term antenatus refers to pre-Independence birth for allegiance purposes and has no application to modern survival rules in probate.
…requires specifying the country with present sovereignty over the bearer's place of birth, a special exception allows a bearer born before 1948 in what was then Palestine to have his birthplace listed as "Palestine." Section 214(d) requires the State Department to make a further accommodation. Even though the Department…