Fertility declines in China are evident, however disagreement occurs over what the determinants are. This study examines the impact of changes in marriage patterns and marital fertility patterns in China during 1953-81. Coale's indirect standardization procedure is used, and results show wide fluctuations during 1949-64, a slight decline during 1965-68, a sharp decline during the 1970s, and a slight increase in the early 1980s. The decline in 1967 marks the beginning of the Cultural Revolution. The decline during the 1970s marks the "later, longer, fewer" campaign. Marital fertility and overall fertility follow the same curve, which suggests that marital fertility has a greater impact on fertility than nuptiality. 74.4% of total fertility during 1953-81 is accounted for by changes in marital fertility. 25.6% of total fertility is attributed to the decline in marital fertility. The proportion ever married inhibits potential fertility more during 1961-81 than during 1953-60 (30% vs. 20%). Changes in the overall fertility rate are more dramatic than changes in the index of marital fertility. For example, the decline was from 0.46 to 0.29 in general fertility compared to a decline from 0.53 to 0.41 for marital fertility. It is reasoned that marital fertility declined due to family limitation. Data are obtained from the 1982 One-Per-Thousand Sample Fertility Survey on the retrospective histories of childbearing and marriage among women aged 15-67 years. A conclusion is made that research should focus on examining the underlying determinants of marital fertility. After the 1970s a variety of factors influenced fertility including family planning policy during the 1970s and in 1979, institutional developments, and social changes in education, employment, women's status, and health services. Behavioral and psychological factors also have an impact on fertility decisions.