By 1813 they died / By 1813 they had died

Anonymous- By 1813 they died. 

- By 1813 they had died.

The second one is not grammatically correct, the simple past is used with a specific point 
while the past perfect is used to describe something that happened before a specific point in the past.

YoungBuddy
while the past perfect is used to describe something that happened before a specific point in the past.

Isn't that exactly what is happening here? Time starts; they die; the year 1813 comes to pass; the present is here. "They would be knighted in 1813 --- unfortunately, by 1813 they had died." (they died sometime before 1813)

I agree with ferdis, the past perfect is correctly used. I don't much like the first sentence, it would be better as "By 1813 they were dead."

ferdis(note he says 'by', not 'in')

Totally convinced ...
Sometimes simple things make a d

AnonymousWhat is the difference in meaning?

- By 1813 they died.

- By 1813 they had died.

The difference is not so much in the meaning, but in the point of view. In the first case, you're telling the story in a certain order. You're thinking in terms of a time line from, say, 1800 to 1850.