MADISONCENTER FOR AMERICAN LEADERSHIP
Support our mission

An invitation to understand

The Constitution,
connected.

Start with a question. Follow a connection.
Discover the ideas that hold a republic together.

YOUR DOCUMENT. YOUR STARTING POINT.

There’s no right place to begin.
Choose something you’re curious about.
We’ll help you take the next step.

Begin with “We the People”
Save your learning

The constitutional text

Article I · Section 9

Select any highlighted phrase to understand what it means.

The Migration or Importation of such Persons as any of the States now existing shall think proper to admit, shall not be prohibited by the Congress prior to the Year one thousand eight hundred and eight, but a Tax or duty may be imposed on such Importation, not exceeding ten dollars for each Person

The Privilege of the Writ of Habeas Corpus shall not be suspended, unless when in Cases of Rebellion or Invasion the public Safety may require it.

No Bill of Attainder or ex post facto Law shall be passed.

[No Capitation, or other direct, Tax shall be laid, unless in Proportion to the Census or Enumeration herein before directed to be taken.]*

No Tax or Duty shall be laid on Articles exported from any State

No Preference shall be given by any Regulation of Commerce or Revenue to the Ports of one State over those of another: nor shall Vessels bound to, or from, one State, be obliged to enter, clear, or pay Duties in another.

No Money shall be drawn from the Treasury, but in Consequence of Appropriations made by Law; and a regular Statement and Account of the Receipts and Expenditures of all public Money shall be published from time to time.

No Title of Nobility shall be granted by the United States: And no Person holding any Office of Profit or Trust under them, shall, without the Consent of the Congress, accept of any present, Emolument, Office, or Title, of any kind whatever, from any King, Prince, or foreign State.

Source: National Constitution Center edition. Original wording is preserved; commentary explains historical and superseded provisions.

Sign in to save progress
Go at your own pace

You don’t have to understand everything at once. One connection is a good beginning.

LOOK A LITTLE CLOSER

Article I, Section 9, Clause 8a

No federal nobility

Current text
No Title of Nobility shall be granted by the United States:

What it means

The United States may not grant titles of nobility. The prohibition rejects a government-created hereditary rank as part of the federal political order.

Historical setting

The Articles contained a related prohibition. Federalist 39 identified the rejection of nobility as strong evidence of the Constitution’s republican character.

What it does

Public offices and honors do not by themselves constitute hereditary aristocracy. The clause must be distinguished from an objection to every ceremonial title or recognition of achievement.

Debate & interpretation

The deeper republican concern is that governing status should not belong to a privileged bloodline. Wealth and influence can still become concentrated without formal nobility, showing that a legal prohibition addresses only part of the challenge of political equality.

A common misreading

Calling an official President, Senator, or Chief Justice does not create a forbidden title of nobility.

Think it through

What forms of inherited influence can exist even in a society that legally prohibits hereditary political titles?

Follow the connection

Sources & further reading

Original Madison Center commentary. Explanations distinguish the text, historical context, and interpretive disagreements.

Sign in to save