Elizabethan Marriages and Weddings

1. Arranged Marriages

1.1. Woman back in the day had Very small, to no choice on who the husband would be.

1.2. The woman were dependent on their male relatives to support them.

1.3. Woman were raised to believe that they were inferior to men, and that men knew better.

1.4. The marriages were set so that wealth would come to the families

1.5. Many times the couple would meet for the first time on the weeding day

1.6. Marriage was a religious, economic, and practical necessity

2. Age

2.1. Legal for boys to marry at 14.

2.2. Legal for girls to marry at 12

2.3. Marriages this young were rare.

2.4. Actual age of consent was 21.

3. The Dowry

3.1. Woman were expected to bring a dowry to the marriage.

3.2. It would be an amount of money, goods, and property.

3.3. When they married the husband gained all rights over her, she would become his property

4. Prep for the wedding

4.1. Wedding would be at a local church.

4.2. Religious ceremony would be conducted by a minister.

4.3. Announce in church three times on three holy days.

4.4. Publishing it beforehand was considered a crime and illegal.

4.5. People would just attend.

4.6. A pre contract was sighed.

4.7. Bride and groom would be attended by family and close friends.

4.8. Wedding clothes varied.

4.9. Exotic dishes were made.

5. Life after marriage

5.1. Large families were a norm.

5.2. Arrangement for the care of their children in case they themselves died during birth.

6. Sex

6.1. Virginity of the bride was very important.

6.2. Marriage was delayed to make sure she was fertile

6.3. Within the marriage sex was allowed by the church.

6.4. Homosexual acts are abominations.

7. The Ceremony

7.1. It was a solemn one.

7.2. Everyone would stand.

7.3. Families and the couple would sometimes enjoy a feast.

7.4. The ceremony was not so diff. from todays.

7.5. They their promised to obey their husbands.