Roman Catholic baptisms. Was proof of marriage of parents needed?

[Pennines]

Oh Sinann -- how very interesting. Thank you so much for the link.

(Every day is a school day!)

[heywood]

Thanks from me too, Sinann.
I knew these records were far too early for the practice but have seen several examples.
My father’s baptism record in 1907 is available on line and it is annotated with his marriage to my mother in England thirty years later.

[Sinann]

The thanks really goes to someone else here on RootsChat who posted about this some years ago but sadly I can’t remember who that was.

I got interrupted earlier, I was planning to say look at point 5 all marriages must be registered in the place or places where the contracting parties were baptised.

So clearly if you marry in your home parish the marriage will be in the marriage register but if you marry in some other parish the best place to ‘register’ it in your home parish is on your baptism record.

[heywood]

I assumed that the priest who married my parents contacted the birth parish for ‘proof’ but maybe it was my dad who had to register or get the evidence.

It was likely Maiden Stone who posted the information some years ago.

[Andy J2022]

Sinann's link is very interesting but it doesn't answer Pennines's question about whether a priest is supposed to check if the parents were validly married (presumably in the Catholic faith) before baptising one of their children.

[Wexflyer]

I can't help but think that this question is somewhat anachronistic.
The date of the baptism is 1826. Consider that at that time:
- The modern postal system was still in the future. No stamps, though there was a post office.
- The Catholic Church was still, in effect, an illegal organization. This affected record keeping. No records in many parishes.
- No Catholic directories to look up priests/addresses.
- Did Catholic priests perform marriages in England in this period? Technically "illegal" of course, but did they? In which case did they keep records? Catholic priests in Ireland did perform supposedly "illegal" marriages.
- I doubt those married were routinely given any written certificate? Even if they got one, would they keep it, as most people were illiterate anyway.
- Modern requirements about notifying parish of baptism, etc. were far in the future (as Sinann has reminded us).

[Sinann]

I assumed that the priest who married my parents contacted the birth parish for ‘proof’ but maybe it was my dad who had to register or get the evidence.

It was likely Maiden Stone who posted the information some years ago.

I married in my husband’s parish so I had to contact my home parish to get a Letter of Freedom (your should get one from every parish you lived in more than six months since you were 18), it was probably the same or similar in your father’s time.

[heywood]

Sinann's link is very interesting but it doesn't answer Pennines's question about whether a priest is supposed to check if the parents were validly married (presumably in the Catholic faith) before baptising one of their children.

Unless they were married in a parish close to the baptism, it would be near impossible to check.
I would imagine the priest would accept their word as baptism was perhaps more  important.

[Wexflyer]

Sinann's link is very interesting but it doesn't answer Pennines's question about whether a priest is supposed to check if the parents were validly married (presumably in the Catholic faith) before baptising one of their children.

Here is a link to an early 20th century Catholic encyclopedia entry on baptism. I see no mention of any necessity for the parents to be married. Indeed why would there be - no salvation for illegitimate children?
https://www.newadvent.org/cathen/02258b.htm