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  1. #1
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    Default young age at marriage

    Not sure where to put this. But browsing through various tree's on Ancestry i noticed that in the 1530's some one had a relative, a girl that was married aged 8 years old. I know that in my own family back in late 1700's there was a girl who was married very young but not nearly so young as 8. So i was just wondering if anyone has any idea how young girls were married in the 1500's

  2. #2

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    I know that sometimes marriages were performed when both parties were very young but they did not live together or consummate the marriage until the girl was old enough.

    Having said that I would certainly treat any information on a tree on Ancestry with a degree of............... uncertainty unless I had seen the original records that proved it. I look at my own tree with suspicion sometimes and I know that I have checked my facts
    Sadly, our dear friend Ann (alias Ladkyis) passed away on Thursday, 26th. December, 2019.
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  3. #3
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    Thank you for your reply. I'm as careful as anyone can be. I had heard that marriages back in time did involve very young people although not quite so young unless it was a very rich family, and they hoped to gain i.e land etc.

  4. #4
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    Quote Originally Posted by Susan Kitchen View Post
    Not sure where to put this. But browsing through various tree's on Ancestry i noticed that in the 1530's some one had a relative, a girl that was married aged 8 years old. I know that in my own family back in late 1700's there was a girl who was married very young but not nearly so young as 8. So i was just wondering if anyone has any idea how young girls were married in the 1500's
    Ecclesiastical law recognised marriages at any age as long as the party concerned was old enough to understand what was taking place, this was normally accepted to be 7 years old, though younger marriages did occur.

    However do not get the impression that it was common for youngsters to be married at that age it was not. Most couple did not marry until at least their 20s but anything from 12 for girls and 14 for boys was not out of the ordinary.

    One big problem that often occurs in verifying age at marriage is many people simply rely on the date of baptism to indicate age but of course this may be a false assumption.
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    Guy
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  5. #5
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    Thank you Guy. The yougest age at marriage i've found in a branch of my family was 15 that was in 1807. I understand that marriages of ages 14 and 15 with parental consent were legal up to as late as about 1890.

  6. #6
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    Default

    This practice still happens in some parts of the world we hear all the time young girls as young as 8 are married.

  7. #7
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    I understand that marriages of ages 14 and 15 with parental consent were legal up to as late as about 1890.
    The age was raised to 16 for both sexes as a result of the Age of Marriage Act of 1929

  8. #8
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    Quote Originally Posted by Peter Goodey View Post
    The age was raised to 16 for both sexes as a result of the Age of Marriage Act of 1929
    In England, Wales, & Scotland, yes however it wasn't raised in the Republic of Ireland until 1975.
    Cheers
    Guy
    As we have gained from the past, we owe the future a debt, which we pay by sharing today.

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