MARILYN CORNWELL: June 24 2023 - Inheritors of the American Revolution

There are history lessons everywhere. While in Virginia, I read about the Society of the Cincinnati. It is a fraternal, hereditary society founded in 1783 to commemorate the American Revolutionary War. Membership is based on descendants of military officers who served in the Continental Army. George Washington was the first President General. There are thirteen constituent societies in the U.S. and one in France. Hence the Cincinnati 14.

"Into its third century, the Society promotes public interest in the Revolution through its library and museum collections, publications, and other activities. It is the oldest patriotic, hereditary society in America."

I had thought the society was named after Cincinnati the place, but it is named after the Roman Consul Lucius Quinctius Cincinnatus who assumed lawful dictatorial control of Rome to meet a war emergency. He returned power to the Senate when the battle was won.

The Society goals seem noble: "To preserve the rights so dearly won; to promote the continuing union of the states; and to assist members in need, their widows, and their orphans."

But criticism was immediate after its founding: an attempt re-establish a hereditary nobility in the new republic. Benjamin Franklin was one of the critics. George Washington, its first President General, became concerned over their desire to appoint the U.S. president rather than the public elect one.

"The Society's rules adopted a system of primogeniture, wherein membership was passed down to the eldest son after the death of the original member. Present-day hereditary members generally must be descended from an original member, an officer who died in service, or an officer who qualified for membership at the Society's founding but did not join. Each officer may be represented by only one descendant at any given time, following the rules of primogeniture."

Here we are at one of the origins of American royalty: American dynastic families that are given the epithet or moniker as American royalty - through politics, business, or entertainment/celebrity careers.

Our pictures show a few moments from its magazine showcasing the eagle insignia, the formal attire of the privileged, and the fraternal membership. That headline revels in the hereditary rules - no need for passwords or handshakes.