Marriage In The Elizabethan Era

The Strife of Not Having A Choice: Making The Best Out of The Situation The excitement and eagerness of forming a family with the person she loves is the exact day that every girl dreams of. However, in the mid 1500s through the early 1600s the men and women enjoyed that special day in a completely different way then we do now. Courtship and marriage were a bigger deal and played a bigger role in the life of both the groom and bride’s families. They were expected of certain things and if they didn’t meet the expectations many problems could come up. Their traditions were much like the ones we have today but the way they were arranged was very different. The most important factor to everyone in the era was to gain more than they had before.

If someone was in a high spot, according to social class, they were assumed to marry one who was equal or higher than themselves. Not only did their spot in social class matter, but also what both families would gain from the marriage. For example, elizabethanenglandlife.com states, “Mostly, these were arranged marriages keeping wealth and reputation into consideration. Families of landowners were expected to marry just to attain land possession” (Courtship Marriages and Divorces during Elizabethan Era). As well, william-shakespeare.info says, “Marriages were frequently arranged so that both families involved would benefit. Marriages would be arranged to bring prestige or wealth to the family” (Elizabethan Wedding Customs). This means that most marriages were put together focusing on what each family would get out of it. Although, it was mainly what the man, or groom, would get out of the marriage. He would already be gaining a dowry, or a measure of land, wealth, and goods. Men were considered the bigger person in the situation, and women were the smaller. In fact, elizabethan-era.org.uk says, “Elizabethan women were subservient to men. They were dependent on their male relatives to support them. Elizabethan women were raised to believe that they were inferior to men and that men knew better!” (Elizabethan Marriages and Weddings). Another main factor of courtship and marriage during the

For example, elizabethanenglandlife.com states, “The matrimony was arranged by families of the bride and the groom in order for the two sides to benefit from one another” (Courtship Divorces and Marriages during Elizabethan Era). After all, that is the only thing anyone worried about in that time. Another high expectation that was held to women was to marry. If they didn’t marry they would be believed by their neighbors that they were witches. In elizabethan-era.org.uk it says, “Regardless of their social standing women and men were expected to marry. Single women who were thought to be witches by their neighbours…” (Elizabethan Marriages and Weddings). One interesting fact about women not marrying is that if they did not marry who their father, or family, chose they could be executed. This obviously left many women speechless, and where they had absolutely no choice in what they do. Once the father chose a man for his daughter and they wed, the man had complete rule over the woman. For instance, elizabethan-era.org.uk says, “After marriage Elizabethan women were expected to run the households and provide children. The law gave a husband full rights over his wife. She effectively became his property” (Elizabethan Marriages and Weddings). The husband had full control over his wife and basically ruled over her. They both had to marry or they would look