Marriage, matrimonium, conjugium, connubium, nuptioe, consortium , considered in general is a civil and political contract, by which a man is united and joined with a woman, with the intention of staying always together.

The principal object of this union is the procreation of children.

Marriage is a divine institution, as well as the right of men commonly found among all peoples, although practiced differently.

Among Christians, marriage is a civil contract, adorned with the dignity of the sacrament of marriage .

According to the institution of marriage , the man should only have one wife and the wife can only have one husband. It is said in Genesis that a man leaves his mother and his father to stay with his wife, and that the two then become one flesh.

Lamech was the first who took multiple wives; and this transgression of the law of marriage so displeased God that he meted out to Lamech a penalty more severe than that which would be inflicted for murder; thus he declared that the retribution for Lamech's crime would continue for seventy-seven generations, whereas to Cain he said simply that he who committed murder would be punished seven times.

Civil law prohibits multiple wives or husbands. However Julius Caesar planned a law to permit multiple wives, but it was not promulgated; the object of this law was to increase the reproduction of children. Valentinian I, wanting to take a second wife besides the one that he already had, made a law stating that each man would be permitted to have two wives, but this law was never observed.

The Roman emperors were not the only ones who defended polygamy. Athalaric, king of the Goths and of the Romans, made the same defense. John the Metropolitan, whom the Muscovites honor as a prophet, made a canon, stating that if a married man left his wife to marry another, or if the wife likewise left her husband, they would be excommunicated until they had returned to their first commitment.

Gontran, king of Orleans, was excommunicated because he had two wives.

Multiple wives was permitted among the Athenians, the Parthians, the Thracians, the Egyptians, the Persians; it is still in practice among the pagans, and particularly among the Orientals: the great number of wives that they have diminishes the consideration they have for them, and causes them to regard them more as slaves than as companions.

Still, it has never been only barbarous peoples who allow the community of women, but also some heretics, such as the Nicolaites, the Gnostics, the Epiphanists and the Anabaptists.

In Arabia several members of one family share only one wife among them.

In Lithuania noble women have several male lovers besides their husbands.

On the coast of Malabar the wives of the Naires, who are the nobles, can have several husbands, although they themselves can only have one wife.

In certain countries, the prince or the lord of the place used to have the right to sleep with the bride on the first night of her marriage . This barbarous custom, which took place in Scotland, was abolished there by Malcolm, and converted into a monetary fine. In France, some lords claimed similar rights, which the purity of our morals would not tolerate.

Since nothing is more natural than marriage , or as necessary for the maintenance of the state, one should always favor these sorts of institutions.

The wide berth that the majority of men give marriage , whether through love of their liberty or through fear of the results that follow from this kind of commitment, have at times required laws against celibacy. See Celibacy.

In France, newlyweds are exempt from the salt tax for one year.

Although marriage consists of the union of body and mind, the consent of the contracting parties forms its base and its substance, such that a marriage is legitimately contracted, even if it is not yet consummated, provided that at the time of the celebration neither of the consenting parties was incapacitated.

For a marriage to be valid, in general the only requirement is the consent of the two parties, as long as neither is in the power of another.

Thus princes and princesses of the blood cannot marry without the consent of the king.

In the kingdom of Naples, officers can, similarly, only marry with the permission of the king; bishops are forbidden from performing similar marriages in their dioceses. In the past, in France, a gentleman with only daughters lost his land if he married them without the consent of his lord; and the mother in the same situation lost her possessions. The heir to a fiefdom, after the death of his father, could no longer marry without the consent of his lord: this custom was still in place during the times of Saint Louis, according to the institutions or laws that he made.

Minor children cannot marry without the consent of their father and mother.

According to Roman law, observed by all the courts with written laws, marriage does not emancipate; but in all the customs and countries with written laws in the jurisdiction of the parliament of Paris, marriage effects a tacit emancipation.

Orphaned minors cannot marry without the consent of relatives; the consent of their guardian or trustee is not enough to authorize marriage .

For a marriage to be valid, free consent is necessary, which is why marriage cannot exist between an abductor and the person abducted.

It is considered a duty of the father to marry his daughters and to endower them according to his means; daughters cannot, however, require their fathers to do so.

Marriage among us is sometimes preceded by a promise of marriage and ordinarily this is done by the engaged couple.

Promises of marriage are effected either through articles and contracts before a notary or by privately signed vows.

These promises are only valid in certain circumstances.

First, that they are made between people having reached the age of puberty, and who are able to marry each other.

Second, that they are in writing, whether privately signed or before a notary. Art. vii of the Ordinance of 1679 prohibits all judges, even clerical, from accepting proof of these vows from a witness.

The third, that they are reciprocal and made in duplicate between the contracting parties, when there is no original draft.

Fourth, that they are settled in the presence of the four parents of both parties, however humble their background; this is the clause of the Art. vii of the Ordinance of 1679 which is nevertheless only observed for the marriage of minors.

When one of the contracting parties breaks the promise of marriage , the other can appeal to the clerical judge to force its fulfillment.

Canonical writings argue that ecclesiastic censure can be used to enforce the fulfillment of marriage pledges; this is a rigorous and severe decision, founded on the disloyalty of those who break their faith and their word; and to mitigate this disloyalty, it used to be thought that it was the lesser evil to enforce the marriage ; but since then these issues have been more carefully examined, and it has been found that it is not a betrayal to rescind promises of marriage , presuming that there are legitimate causes which one cannot make public, and when there is only the single change of mind, it must be sufficient, since the will should be less constrained in marriage than in any other action; it is because of this that in the decretals praeterea and requisivit , by which liberty is left intact in order to contract a marriage , some promises can be excused.

In the past, in some courts, those convicted of raping a minor were condemned to marry her, or else to be hung; this legal practice, recognized as unsuitable, is no longer observed, and no one is any longer condemned to marriage .

It is true that in condemning a party to pay damages for breach of promises of marriage , it is presented if it is better than marrying without love , but this alternative does preserve the choice whether or not to marry.

Penalties inserted in the promises of marriage are invalid, because they remove the liberty that should always accompany marriages , nevertheless damages are sometimes granted depending on the circumstances; however if too great a sum has been stipulated, it is subject to rejection, since this could be a way of enforcing the completion of the marriage , whether because of the inability to pay the penalty or out of fear of being ruined by paying it.

Engagements are the promises for a future marriage , performed under the auspices of the Church; they are proper and useful, but not necessary; they can be contracted by all kinds of people, of at least seven years of age, with the consent of their caretakers. See Engagement.

The civil contract of marriage is the substance, the basis, the foundation and the cause of the sacrament of marriage , this is why it must be perfect in itself in order to be elevated to the dignity of a sacrament; because God did not wish to sanctify all unions, but only those who were made according to the accepted laws of civil society, so that when the civil contract is void because of the lack of legitimate consent, the sacrament cannot be attached to it.

The contract has no civil effect if there is no sacrament: still it happens sometimes that the contract has no civil effect, even if the sacrament is complete; for example, when the contract is invalidated not by lack of legitimate consent but by lack of some formality required by civil laws which are not fundamental to marriage , according to the laws of the Church.

Any person who has attained the age of puberty can marry.

The law used to prohibit the marriage of a man of 60 years and of a woman of 50, but Justinian removed this obstacle and now any age can marry.

One can contract marriage with anyone, providing there are no impediments.

These impediments are of two types; those that simply prohibit contracting marriage , before it has been celebrated; the others, called diriments , require the breaking of the marriage , even if it has already been celebrated. See Impediment.

The ordinance of Blois and the edict of 1697 caution priests and vicars to carefully inform themselves of the quality of those whom they wish to marry; and in the case that they do not know them, to gather information from four trustworthy people, who will vouch for the quality of the contracting parties; and if designated heir, or wards of another, it is expressly prohibited for priests and vicars to proceed with the celebration of the marriage , unless they appear with the consent of their father, mother, guardian and trustee, on pain of being punished as perpetrators of the crime of abduction.

It is also prohibited by the ordinance of Blois for any guardians to agree or consent to the marriage of their wards, without the advice and consent of their nearest relatives, whether paternal or maternal, on pain of exemplary punishment.

If the contracting parties are adults of 25 years, the lack of their father's and mother's consent does not invalidate the marriage ; but the parties, even if adults of 25 years, are obligated to ask, in writing, for the consent of their father and mother, and in their absence of their grandfather and grandmother, in order to avoid being disinherited, or deprived of other advantages that they have received from their father and mother, whether by virtue of their contract of marriage or of the law.

It suffices for young women of 25 years to request this consent, without being obliged to wait too long for it: with regard to young men, they are obligated to way for this consent until the age of 30 years, otherwise they risk disinheritance and all the penalties carried by law.

Nevertheless when the mother is remarried, the son of 25 years is permitted to give her respectful notification.

Minor children of fathers and mothers who have left the realm without permission and have taken up residence in foreign countries, can, in their absence, contract marriage , without waiting for nor asking for the consent of the father and mother or of their guardians and trustees, who have taken up residence in foreign countries, on the condition, however, that they have gotten the advice and consent of six of their closest relatives or relations, as many paternal as maternal; and lacking relatives, they must call on friends. This familial advice must be given in the presence of a local judge, the prosecutor automatically present.

The declaration of 5 June 1635 prohibits anyone, without royal permission, from granting consent for their children, or those for whom they are custodians or trustees, to marry in foreign lands, on penalty of perpetual service in the galleys for men, perpetual banishment for the women, and confiscation of all their goods.

According to the ordinances, the publication of banns must be made by the priest of each of the contracting parties with the consent of the father, the mother, guardian or trustee: if they are the designated heir, or wards of another, they must be published on three different holidays at appropriate intervals, and one cannot obtain exemption from the banns except after the publication of the first and for legitimate cause.

When minors who live in a different parish than their parents or guardians get married the banns must be published in both parishes.

A faithful record of the publication of banns must be kept, of exemptions, of opposition that arises, and of withdrawals which are sworn by the parties, or pronounced by the court.

Failure to publish banns between adults does not invalidate the marriage .

In order for the marriage to be valid it must be celebrated publicly in the presence of a proper priest; this is the ruling of the council of Trent and of the ordinances of our kings; and according to the latest precedent, the assistance of two priests is necessary.

In order to be considered an ordinary parishioner by the priest who performs the marriage , one must have lived for a sufficient duration in the parish; this time is six months for those who lived previously in another parish of the same town, or in the same diocese, and one year for those who lived in another diocese.

When opponents to the marriage come forward, the priest cannot continue with the marriage ceremony unless they rescind their opposition.

Besides the formalities already mentioned, it is necessary to have four witnesses.

Finally, it is the nuptial benediction which gives completion to the marriage ; until that point there is neither a civil contract nor a sacrament.

Clerical judges are the only ones competent to hear the specific reasons that a marriage should be nullified, in cases which are purely spiritual matters and at the heart of the sacrament.

Nevertheless all judges can indirectly judge marriage , when they have knowledge of either abduction either via a criminal or civil, contractual means.

When one claims injury as a result of the celebration of a marriage , the Parliament is the only court that can hear it.

Once a marriage has been validly contracted it is indissoluble among us, because we do not recognize divorce; and when there are nullifying impediments, we declare that the marriage was improperly celebrated, so that, properly said, the marriage was not broken because it was never valid in the first place.

The separation of bodies in itself no longer breaks the marriage tie.

The commitment to marry is ordinarily preceded by a contract before a notary, in order to regulate the agreements of the future couple.

This contract contains the inventory of what each brings to the marriage , and the benefits that the future couple will bring each other.

In almost every country it is common that the future husband promise his future wife a dowry or other nuptial gift, to assure her of her support after the death of her husband; in the past marriages were concluded at the door of the monastery or the church; all was done without anything written, and only survived in people's memory; as a result there were many excuses to annul marriages or for separation.

The dowry was stipulated at the door of the church; and from this comes the practice which is currently observed in the church, that the future husband, before the nuptial blessing, says to his future wife: I grand you a dowry which has been transferred between your parents and mine , and give her a sign of this engagement, a piece of money. According to the manual of Beauvais, the husband continues by saying to his wife: I honor you with my body, etc.

It is not necessary that the marriage have been consummated in order for the wife to earn her dowry, provided it is not a region in which one of several specific customs applies, which expressly require that the wife earns her dowry in bed; such as that of Normandy, that of Ponthieu and several others; proof of the consummation is not required; it is presumed in this case, since the wife has slept with her husband.

It is up to the husband to pay for the wedding; and it is to help him carry the costs that the fruits of the dowry are given to him.

Second, third, and subsequent marriages are subject to specific laws, which we will deal with in the article Second Marriages.

On marriage in general, see book V of the code de Paris, tit. 1 through 27 inclusive ; book IV of the Decretals; the Novella [of Justinian] 117.140; Henri IV’s edict of February 1556; the ordinance of Orléans, art. 3; the ordinance of Blois, art. 40 ff. ; the edict of Melun, art. 25; Henri IV’s edict of 1606, art. 12; Louis XIII’s ordinance of 1629, art. 39. and 169; the declaration of 1639; the edict of March 1697; the Memoires of the clergy vol. V; the ecclesiastical laws of Hericourt; the canonical library; that of Bouchel; and that of Jovet; Brillon ’s dictionary, under the word marriage; and others who have treated marriage , of whom he gives a long list.

There are several other observations to make about specific marriages , about which we will give some idea in the subsections that follow.