tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28102666.post1067519049630575020..comments2024-03-28T04:26:30.557-05:00Comments on Boston 1775: The Stamp Act as a Marriage TaxUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28102666.post-30529229706365883612015-12-21T00:29:38.674-05:002015-12-21T00:29:38.674-05:00Yes, historians have found that for most of the ei...Yes, historians have found that for most of the eighteenth century up to 40% of first-time New England brides gave birth within seven months of their marriage—in other words, it's clear they were pregnant when they married. <br /><br />There's a lot that's still unclear, at least to me (and I've kept my eyes open for answers). Were these couples together for a while and finally got married when they realized they were expecting? Or were they more casual lovers who realized they had to get married for life? What role did bundling play? <br /><br />The legal requirement to announce one's intentions to marry wasn't related to premarital sex, though, and it didn't excuse the act. The fifteen-day notice was supposed to give the community time to object to a marriage if they knew of a reason it shouldn't take place: other spouses, other lovers, general dissipation, and so on. <br /><br />Couples who had clearly fornicated before marriage still had to make some sort of confession before being allowed to join their local meeting, and one parent had to join the meeting before a child could be baptized. So even though the social stigma (and criminal penalties) for premarital sex went way down between the 1600s and the 1700s, there was still formal disapproval. J. L. Bellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15405157000473731801noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28102666.post-438150489181944112015-12-20T21:10:08.043-05:002015-12-20T21:10:08.043-05:00Is this what historians say got a pregnant "c...Is this what historians say got a pregnant "couple" out of church charges of sex out of wedlock? That up to, maybe, thirty percent of women were pregnant at this stage. But by declaring they would marry, they escaped church and social retribution.John L. Smithhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14827783825431694038noreply@blogger.com