INCESTUOUS MARRIAGES, OR, Relations of Consanguinity and Affinity hindering and dissolving Marriage, as making all Marriages within such Relations to be Incestuous, and all Children begotten of such Marriages to be Illegitimate, or Bastards to all intents and purposes. I. CONSANGVINITY. COnsanguinity, Kindred, or Blood, hinders and dissolves Marriage between three; or (taking two of them double) five Relations. 1. Where one of the persons is descended from the other, that is, Parents and Children, viz. Father and Daughter. Mother and Son. 2. Where both persons are descended immediately from a third, that is,— Brother and Sister. 3. Where one of the persons is descended from the Brother or Sister of the other: For these are Loco Parentum & Liberorum, in place of Parents and Children, viz.— Uncle and Niece. Aunt and Nephew. Hence, by reason of Consanguinity, no Man may marry his own Mother, Daughter, Sister, Aunt, or Niece. And, by the same reason, no Woman may marry her own Father, Son, Brother, Uncle, or Nephew. II. AFFINITY, AFfinity depends upon Consanguinity, and so in like manner hinders and dissolves Marriage, viz. In what Relation a Man may not marry his own Kinswoman, in the same he may not marry his Wife's Kinswoman, or his Kinsman's Wife. And by the same reason, In what Relation a Woman may not marry her own Kinsman, in the same she may not marry her Husband's Kinsman, or her Kinswomans' Husband. The reason of both is, because Husband and Wife are one Flesh, Gen. 2. 24. Hence, by reason of Affinity, no Man may marry his Wife's Mother, or his Father's Wife: his Wife's Daughter, or his Son's Wife: his Wife's Sister, or his Brother's Wife: his Wife's Aunt, or his Uncle's Wife: his Wife's Niece, or his Nephew's Wife. And by the same reason, no Woman may marry her Husband's Father, or her Mother's Husband: her Husband's Son, or her Daughter's Husband: her Husband's Brother, or her Sister's Husband: her Husband's Uncle, or her Aunt's Husband: her Husband's Nephew, or her Niece's Husband. Where 1. Under the names of Father, Mother, Son, Daughter, Uncle, Aunt, Nephew, and Niece, are comprehended and understood, not only they who are such in the immediate or next Degree, but also they who are such in any Degree whatsoever: that is to say, Grandfather, Grandmother, Grandsonne, Granddaughter, Great Uncle, Great Aunt, Great Nephew, Great Niece, etc. upward and downward in infinitum. 2. Under the names of Brother, Sister, Uncle, Aunt, Nephew and Niece, are comprehended and understood, not only they who are such by whole Blood, that is, both by Father and Mother, but also they who are such by halfblood, that is, either by Father or Mother. All these Prohibitions are briefly set forth to the Eye in this following Table. CONSANGVINITY. AFFINITY. A No Man may marry his own 1 Mother, Grandmother, etc. 2 Daughter, Granddaughter, etc. 3 Sister. 4 Aunt, Great Aunt, etc. 5 Niece, Great Niece, etc. C No Man may marry his Wife's 1 Mother, Grandmother, etc. 2 Daughter, Granddaughter, etc. 3 Sister. 4 Aunt, Great Aunt, etc. 5 Niece, Great Niece, etc. E No Man may marry the Wife of his 1 Father, Grandfather, etc. 2 Son, Grandsonne, etc. 3 Brother. 4 Uncle, Great Uncle, etc. 5 Nephew, Great Nephew, etc. B No Woman may marry her own 1 Father, Grandfather, etc. 2 Son, Grandsonne, etc. 3 Brother. 4 Uncle, Great Uncle, etc. 5 Nephew, Great Nephew, etc. D No Woman may marry her Husbands 1 Father, Grandfather, etc. 2 Son, Grandsonne, etc. 3 Brother. 4 Uncle, Great Uncle, etc. 5 Nephew, Great Nephew, etc. F No Woman may marry the Husband of her 1 Mother, Grandmother, etc. 2 Daughter, Granddaughter, etc. 3 Sister. 4 Aunt, Great Aunt, etc. 5 Niece, Great Niece, etc. All these Relations of Consanguinity and Affinity are prohibited Marriage 1. By the levitical Law, or Law of God, either in express terms, or (which is all one) by divers necessary consequences, from likeness, parity, or majority of Reason: which is as much as a man is forbidden to marry his own Grandmother, or his own Daughter. For neither of these is there forbidden in express terms, but both evidently by divers necessary Consequences. 2. By the Civil or Imperial Law, in divers express Texts of the Digest, Code, and Institutes. 3. By the Canon Law. 4. By the Ecclesiastical Laws of the Church of England in all Ages: Particularly, since the Reformation, in the Table set forth by Authority, 1563. confirmed and commanded to be set up in all Churches by the 99th Canon 1603. 5. By several Statutes or Acts of Parliament in this case provided: Particularly, by that very Statute 32 H. 8. Cap. 38. which is the only Statute objected against us; and by that very Clause of that Statute, which is chiefly insisted upon, viz. [That no reservation or prohibition, God's Law except, shall trouble or impeach any Marriage Without the Levitical Degrees.] Which plainly imports, that all Marriages Within the levitical Degrees (as all these are) shall be troubled and impeached, though there were no exception against them by any other Law of God. 6. By the Laws of all other Churches in the Christian World, of what Country, Government, or Persuasion in Religion soever they be. Lastly, whereas this whole Table consists of 30 Prohibitions, distinguished into six Classes by A. B. for Consanguinity, C. D. E. F. for Affinity, and every Class into five Prohibitions, by 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. They are so ordered and disposed, that they mutually explain and infer one another above 100 ways: So that grant any one of them, and grant all; Deny one, and deny all. Imprimatur, Jan. xxii. 1677/8. H. LONDON. London, Printed for Robert Pawlet at the Bible in Chancery-lane, 1677/8.