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Civil registration began in England/Wales in 1837 and Scotland in 1855.
Does that mean that weddings before those dates happened _only_ in places of worship (churches, chapels etc) , in the name of a religion, and there simply were no non-religious weddings ?
Or were there 'civil' marriages too ?
Does anyone have a definitive answer to this?
TIA
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As I understand it, legally, the only places to get married were (Anglican) Churches, Quaker Meeting Houses and Synagogues. Quakers and Jews were allowed to conduct their own weddings because they were known to be meticulous in keeping records.
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The Marriage Act 1753, also called Lord Hardwicke's Marriage Act, required formal ceremony of marriage, thus abolishing common-law marriage.
The law set forth much stricter rules regarding marriage, including that marriages must be performed in a church and must be officially recorded.
This was the first Act which specifically recognised the practices of the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers) in their marriage procedures, including allowing marriage without an officiant and marriage not in a church building, and recognised these in law
In 1837, at the same time as civil registration was introduced, the concept of a Civil Register Office marriage also came into being.
It must be remembered that whilst the majority of people would have been married in a C of E church, this does not mean they were particularly religious, or even followed that faith.
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http://www.joinermarriageindex.co.uk/history.php
Parish Registers were first ordered to be kept by a mandate of Thomas Cromwell, Vicar General of King Henry VIII in 1538. Cromwell ordered that every parish must keep a register and that every Sunday, the incumbent, in the presence of the wardens, must enter all the baptisms, marriages and burials of the previous week. The register was to be kept in a coffer with two locks. Failure to comply brought a fine of 3s 4d (17p) which was to be spent on the upkeep of the church. The order was received with much suspicion - most people believed it was the forerunner for some new tax. Many parishes ignored it.
The order was repeated in 1547, during the reign of Edward V, but this time the fine was to go towards poor relief.
1754: Hardwicke's Marriage Act, which affected England and Wales, came into force from March 25th 1754. The Act stated that a marriage could be solemnised only in a parish church or public chapel after the publication of banns or by a licence issued by the Bishop of the diocese. Banns books and marriage registers were required to be kept separate from the books containing baptisms and burials. With the exception of Jews and Quakers, marriages were required to be performed by a clergy of the Church of England. Parties under the age of 21 (minors) required the consent of parents or guardians to marry. Those embracing the Catholic faith or other non-conformists married in the Church of England and their own chapels/churches just to be sure the marriage was recognized as legal.
1823 Marriage Act: This Act declared clandestine marriages (i.e. those without banns of licence) valid, but the officiating minister a felon.
1836 Marriage Act: Superintendent Registrars were empowered to issue licenses for marriage in the office of a registrar or in a non-conformist church. After 1837, the marriage register kept by the parish church was laid out to look much like the actual civil registration certificates which began in that year. It is also important to note that whereas before 1837 everyone who was not a Jew or a Quaker had to marry in the church, after 1837, it was possible to marry in a Register Office, or in a Catholic Church or a nonconformist chapel that had been licensed. By 1900 it is estimated that some 10% of marriages occurred in register offices.
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Many thanks to all for the detailed replies and background information.
This tells me what I needed to know - that where a marriage in England / Wales was recorded before civil reistration, that marriage would not only have been recorded by the church, but would also have taken place in church (or other approved place of worship).
I assume the situation in Scotland, before civil registration began in 1855, was similar ?
Thanks again,
GeordieLad
p.s. I've already started googling for the 1753 act, just to satisfy my curiosity.
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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marriage_licence
There were two kinds of marriage licences that could be issued: the usual was known as a common licence and named one or two parishes where the wedding could take place, within the jurisdiction of the person who issued the licence. The other was the special licence, which could only be granted by the Archbishop of Canterbury or his officials and allowed the marriage to take place in any church.
To obtain a marriage licence, the couple or more usually the bridegroom, had to swear that there was no just cause or impediment why they should not marry. This was the marriage allegation. A bond was also lodged with the church authorities for a sum of money to be paid if it turned out that the marriage was contrary to Canon Law. The bishop kept the allegation and bond and issued the licence to the groom, who then gave it to the vicar of the church, where they were to get married. There was no obligation, for the vicar to keep the licence and many were simply destroyed. Hence, few historical examples of marriage licences, in England and Wales, survive. However, the allegations and bonds were usually retained and are an important source for English genealogy.
Hardwicke's Marriage Act 1753 affirmed this existing ecclesiastical law and built it into statutory law. From this date, a marriage was only legally valid, if it followed the calling of banns in church or the obtaining of a licence—the only exceptions being Jewish and Quaker marriages, whose legality was also recognised. From the date of Lord Hardwicke's Marriage Act, up to 1837, the ceremony was required to be performed in a consecrated building.
Since July 1, 1837, civil marriages have been a legal alternative to church marriages, under the Marriage Act 1836 and the Registration Act 1836, which provided the statutory basis for regulating and recording marriages. So, today, a couple has a choice between being married in the Anglican Church, after the calling of banns or obtaining a licence or else, they can give "Notice of Marriage" to a civil registrar. In this latter case, the notice is publicly posted for 15 days, after which a civil marriage can take place. Marriages may take place in churches other than Anglican churches, but these are governed by civil marriage law and notice must be given to the civil registrar in the same way. The marriage may then take place without a registrar being present, if the church itself is registered for marriages and the minister or priest is an Authorised Person for marriages.
The licence does not record the marriage itself, only the permission for a marriage to take place. Since 1837, the proof of a marriage has been by a marriage certificate, issued at the ceremony; before then, it was by the recording of the marriage in a parish register.
The provisions on civil marriage in the 1836 Act were repealed by the Marriage Act 1949. The Marriage Act 1949 re-enacted and re-stated the law on marriage in England and Wales.
Marriage law and practice in Scotland differs from that in England and Wales. Historically, it was always considered legal and binding for a couple to marry by making public promises, without a formal ceremony. Church marriages "without proclamation" are somewhat analogous to the English "marriages by licence", although licences were not formally issued in Scotland. However, in modern times, the English and Scottish systems have been brought into line: all legal marriages in Scotland take place according to a similar system to that for English civil marriages.
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If you 'like' reading Acts of parliament then this site has the ones researchers are likely to come across....
http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~framland/acts/actind.htm
Chris
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Joy, what a comprehensive yet concise statement of the situation - well done!
Just to amplify a little:
Marriages in Catholic churches always take place in the presence of a registrar.
Most, but not all, churches of the principal nonconformist denominations are registered and have an authorised person (AP). Incidentally, I believe an AP for one building may act as AP in a different one.
And, of course, civil marriages are no longer restricted to register offices - hotels, stately homes and even amusement parks are among places now licensed for civil marriages.
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There was a short period when only civil marriages were performed.
1653 saw the Barebones Parliament “Act touching Marriages and the registering thereof and also touching Birth and Burials” Now only civil marriages conducted by a Justice of the Peace were valid and a notice ‘Publication of intention to marry’ (Banns) was to be posted in the market place or in the church porch for the three Sundays prior to the marriage and these were to be recorded in a separate book although some appear in the marriage register itself.
The Long Parliament was reinstated in February 1660 after the fall of the Cromwellian Protectorate and was formally dissolved on 16 March 1660. Charles II was restored to the throne and the Established Church was reinstated.
In 1660 “An Act for Confirmation of Marriages” legalised all marriages that had been illegally solemnised.
Chris
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