For supporters, the couple’s defiant marriage was excused as romantic, whereas opponents declared that the pair were not a “fit match.” Marriage contracts were typically accompanied by financial arrangements, which gave parents more influence over whom their children wed. Discourses of love provide an alternative moral code. argued that her similar status to William made them a suitable match, but opponents warned against combining their lineages. Early modern marriages created factional, as well as legal, bonds. Arbella and William claimed their precontract and wedding were legal, but James declared their precontract and marriage illicit. While the law is held up as an authoritative institution, the il/legality of actions is contested. “Spin-doctoring Discourse” explores debates around Arbella and William’s marriage.
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