Just out of curiosity, have there ever been any tribunals (would it be called a forensic tribunal?) conducted on marriages from 'way back in history? Like Henry VIII's and perhaps any royal marriage where they were political rather than love matches?

Seems to me that many of those marriages were more contracts than marriages, especially where there was more or less "highly recommended" conversions to Catholicism.

-- GT (nospam@nospam.com), March 10, 2004

Answers

Canon 1675 §1 A marriage which was not challenged while both parties were alive, cannot be challenged after the death of either or both, unless the question of validity is a necessary preliminary to the resolution of another controversy in either the canonical or the civil forum.

This is similar to (but with stronger language than) canon 1972 of the old 1917 Code of Canon Law.

-- Mark (aujus_1066@yahoo.com), March 10, 2004.

Thanks Mark--I was wondering if future tribunalists did it as an exercise--like lawyers re- arguing the Darwin case.

-- GT (nospam@nospam.com), March 11, 2004.