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Abstract
High rates of remarriage in ancien régime France indicate that many children lived in stepfamilies, sometimes with half-siblings and step-siblings. Sociologists have developed the theory of the blended family to account for these kinds of family situations. With some adjustments, it is possible to use the theory to describe a particular familial form in early modern France. Using accounts of guardianship of orphans from Paris and Châlons-sur-Marne (Champagne region) in the period 1630–1790, this article explores the relationships between the individuals involved in such reconstituted families, in a society where divorce was illegal and patrimonial transmission was organized by customary law.