Genealogy Chat

My Great grandmother’s marriage certificate states that she was 21 in 1881 when she married my Great grandfather, this would put her birth date at 1860. However all other documentation about her i.e. earlier and later census returns etc say her birth date was 1864 in which case she would have been seventeen on her marriage? I was beginning to think I had the wrong marriage but everything else matches, her birthplace, her father’s occupation, her husband’s occupation all names etc. I noticed that neither of the witnesses were family, (but friends I presume). I thought this may be because that her parents were absent from the ceremony, so could this be a consent thing? Does anybody know if you had to be 21 to marry without parental consent in 1891 or is there another answer? I hope this is the case or I’ve got a lot of my history wrong. Any suggestions would be gratefully received.

I am confused by the ages you mention. If 21 in 1891 then birth is approx 1870. If birth year of 1864 is correct then she was 27 when she married in 1891

Yes you had to be 21 to marry without parental consent.(unless you had been married previously and widowed before 21 - then you could re-marry legally without consent and still under 21) I think it didn't have to be a case of falling out with the parents though. More likely it just saved them the hassle of having to give consent. Hubby's ancestor was 17 but said 22 when he married. His dad was a witness, so could easily have consented. It was easier just to lie!!! Sarah

Oops Alan you have changed 1891 to 1881

Hi Alan In the 18th century and before Girls could marry at 12 and Boys at 14. It was a forgotten rule and actually wasn't changed until 1929. Regards Maureen

It was very common to give ages as '21' or 'Full' My wifes g grandparents gave their ages as 21 but we now know that neither were that age and were probably 22/ 24 and g grandma being the older of the two. In certain parts of the country it was not considered 'proper' for a man to marry an older woman. On the other hand, couples under 21 often claimed they were older to avoid having to get parental permission. This was not necessarily because their parents disapproved, but because it was too much trouble to complete the documentation, given that many could not read or write.

Thanks for all the reply's and yes the first date was a typo the answers seem split down the middle but given some of your experiences with your ancestors i think it seems quite normal to have date variances