Scandal from the Vicars of Bampton: “Mary, base childe of that incestuous whore Mary Touse”
Mary was baptized in Bampton, Oxfordshire on 10 Jul 1702. Her arrival was clearly not an occasion of joy for whoever recorded it. Illegitimate children are nearly always noted as such in parish records. The terms vary but include bastard, base child, or filius populi, “son of the people.” Describing a mother as “that incestuous whore” definitely was not standard terminology.