Expectations of daughters in Elizabethan England:
The most important thing that a daughter can do is to be honest
and also to be a virgin until they are married, because if they do not have
these things they are considered to be nothing.
17th Century rules regarding marriage:
The main rules regarding marriage state that you can only be
married between the hours of eight and twelve and not on a holy day. The
marriage must take place in a church or chapel. People under the age of 21 must
have a guardian present to give consent. The minister is not to marry any
person without a license.
Marriage Customs:
At seven years of age a girls father’s could match them with a
husband, at nine she started getting dowry, at twelve she was old enough to
consent to the marriage (although many women did not have a choice). At the age
of sixteen she will actually get married. The engagement was done in two
stages, the first being of an agreement to marry and the second being the
taking of an oath. The chastity of a women was their principal virtue, if they
did not have that no man would look after her, and they would also receive serious
implications.
No comments:
Post a Comment