The
Captain and The Countess
By
Rosemary Morris
I have written three historical romances, with
strong themes set in the reign of Queen Anne Stuart and am writing a series of
articles about life in the early 18th century.
To purchase visit http://bookswelove.net/authors/morris-rosemary/
The
Age of Consent
In England, a fourteen-year-old
boy and a twelve-year-old girl could marry without the consent of their parents
or guardians. Even if the boy was poor and the girl a duke’s daughter once the
knot was tied it would be impossible to untie it.
For example, without his father’s
consent fifteen-year-old Sir George Downing married thirteen-year-old Mary
Forester in 1714. In accordance with custom they were bedded in the presence of
those who later testified that they did not touch each other.
After the marriage, George spent
four years travelling abroad while Mary lived with her parents. When he
returned to England he refused to live with his lawful wife and publicly
declared that he would not consummate the marriage. Fourteen years later the
couple who disliked each other wanted a divorce. They applied to the
‘Legislative Power’ to dissolve the marriage. The judgement was that in the
words of the marriage service Those whom
God has joyn’d let no Man put asunder. The verdict was that George and Mary
were Man and Wife by the Laws of God and the laws of the Land and could not be
divorced.
Valentines,
Marriage Settlements and Wedding Rings
Young people could visit each
other and meet in dancing academies. On St Valentine’s day, an equal number of
maidens and bachelors got together. They wrote their names on papers called
Valentines which were rolled up. These were distributed at random and the
bachelors held Balls and gave treats to the maiden who was his valentine.
Sometimes, they fell in love and married but the wild blood engendered in
Charles II’s reign still ran hot and young men tended to avoid marriage.
Another reason to avoid wedlock
were marriage settlements which were comparatively new. Previously widows were
contented with the third part of their husbands’ property which the law
allotted them. Now the sum of the wife’s pin money for her personal use was
included in a marriage settlement. Apart from the marriage contract the
bridegroom was obliged to give his bride a ring with ‘a posy’ (two couplets) on
it. These are examples of those engraved on lost wedding rings advertised in
the newspapers.
‘Two made one
By
God alone.’
‘God’s Providence
Is our Inheritance.’
‘Vertuous love
Will never remove.’
What about unvirtuous marriage?
In 1702 Haagen Swendson kidnapped Mrs Rawlins, an heiress and was convicted of
a crime and executed. In another case Sir Alexander Cumming, Knight of the
Shire, abducted Madam Dennis rumoured to be worth £16,000. There were no
consequences either because of his rank or because Madam Dennis was content.
Public
and Private Marriages
Reading the banns in church for
three weeks to inform the congregation of a couple’s intention to wed had
become unpopular. A letter in The
Spectator newspaper published by Steele to the editor reads: ‘I was marry’d on Sunday last, and went
peaceably to Bed; but to my Surprise, was awaken’d the next Morning by the
Thunder of a set of Drums.’ The
unfortunate bridegroom had to pay the drummers to go away.
To avoid the noise and riot of a
public church wedding, which besides being very expensive because an open house
was only a small part of the celebrations, marriage by license in front of
witnesses became popular.
Private marriages for which a
marriage license cost a guinea became popular. Some couples preferred to be married
in their closets (small rooms) in the presence of two friends who were
witnesses.
This new custom could be subject
to abuse. Clergymen accepted a fee instead of calling the banns or insisting on
a marriage license. A bride and groom could marry in a chapel which required
neither banns nor a marriage license. Bigamy could be concealed and matches
that would probably result in a difficult life could take place between ladies
of quality and footmen. Some couples married in taverns such as the Ship Tavern without Temple Bar and in both the Queen’s Bench Prison and the Fleet. Clandestine
marriages conducted by defrocked clergymen and laymen at the Fleet and forged
marriage certificates were an illegal curse.
Novels by
Rosemary Morris available as e-publications and paper backs.
Early 18th
century novels: Tangled Love, Far Beyond Rubies and The Captain and The
Countess
Regency novels: False
Pretences and Sunday’s Child, Monday’s Child and Tuesday’s Child. Heroines born
on different days of the week.
Mediaeval Novel,
Yvonne, Lady of Cassio, set in the turbulent reign of Edward II will be
published as and e-book on the 9h May, 2017 and subsequently as a paperback.
No comments:
Post a Comment
I have opened up comments once again. The comments are moderated so if you are a spammer you are wasting your time and mine. I will not approve you.