George Boyle
Medieval weddings were a very different affair to modern nuptials. They were primarily seen as a way of forming alliances between families and were often arranged to exchange property or build business relationships. Love was rarely the main consideration, and most couples married out of necessity. Weddings usually began with a procession from the bride's home to the church, with minstrels playing various instruments, including bagpipes, flutes, and trumpets. The ceremony then took place outside the church doors, with the bride standing on the left side, reflecting the belief that Eve was created from Adam's left rib. The dowry, or bride price, was also presented to the groom during the ceremony.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Location | Outside the church doors |
| Participants | Bride, groom, priest, best man, bride's parents, groom's parents, minstrels, friends and well-wishers |
| Clothing | Bride wore cosmetics, hair worn loosely, sometimes with a floral wreath |
| Procession | Led by minstrels, followed by the bride and groom walking side by side |
| Ceremony | Priest asked if anyone objected to the marriage, questioned the couple about transgressions, couple exchanged vows, rings placed on the fourth finger |
| After the ceremony | A feast with friends and family, drinking wine, listening to love songs and poems performed by minstrels |
| Dowry | Given by the bride's family to the groom, part of the woman's inheritance from her parents |
| Consent | Parental consent was not required until the 1700s in England |
| Age | Girls married at 12, boys at 14 |
| Prohibited marriages | Consanguinity, monastic or religious vows, rape, adultery, incest, during a time of fasting |
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What You'll Learn
Wedding processions
A medieval wedding procession was a grand affair, with the most elaborate processions belonging to those of royal birth. The procession would begin with minstrels, who played various instruments, including bagpipes, the six-stringed viol, flutes, drums, and trumpets. For brides and grooms of a lower caste, their families might hire family members or friends to lead the procession with instruments and singing.
Following the musicians, the bride and groom would walk side by side toward the church, with the bride on the groom's left side, as it was believed that God fashioned Eve out of Adam's left rib. The best man, chosen for his skills as a swordsman, would ride on horseback directly behind the couple to protect them from potential kidnappers or other dangers. The bride's parents would walk just behind the groom's parents.
Upon arriving at the church, the minstrels would cease playing, and the wedding party would line up quietly outside the church doors. The priest, holding the wedding ring, would stand just in front of the closed doors, beneath the portico. The bride's father would then encourage his daughter to take her place in front of the priest, while the best man escorted the groom to stand beside his bride. The couple would face the priest, with the groom on the right side and the bride on the left.
The priest would then begin the ceremony by asking if anyone present knew of any reason why the couple should not be married. This was done to ensure that there were no grounds for prohibiting the marriage, such as the couple being too closely related or if either party had taken a monastic or religious vow.
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Wedding attire
For a medieval wedding, the bride and groom would choose the finest of their jewellery and attire to wear. For the lower classes, this might mean wearing the same dress they wore for other special occasions. However, those of royal or noble class typically commissioned new outfits for the occasion. The fashion also varied depending on the century and country in focus.
Bride
A bride wore her finest dress, robe, and jewellery. Most brides wore blue, the colour of purity, piety, and the Virgin Mary. Wealthier brides wore red or gold. Royals and nobles chose materials such as velvet, satin, or silk. A bride of lower social status might wear a dress made of linen or cotton, resembling as much as possible the dresses worn by ladies of status. Underneath it all, no matter her status, a bride wore a chemise and breast band, as well as knee-length stockings. A bride's hair was worn loosely and sometimes a floral wreath sat atop her head.
Groom
Like the brides, grooms wore a cotehardie. Over time, the men's hemlines became shorter, and the cotehardie transformed into the doublet, which resembles a contemporary tuxedo vest or jacket. Underneath, a man wore loose-fitting linen breeches held up by a jewelled belt. He also wore a linen tunic. A man tied his hose directly to his breeches, to his belt, or to his snug-fitting doublet. Doublets featured elaborate buttons and terminated at the hips. Over the top, a groom wore a woollen robe, tunic, or kirtle. Men of all classes wore metalwork belts, sometimes jewelled. A wealthy groom's dagger featured an intricate jewelled hilt and scabbard. Grooms also wore headdresses, such as a richly-coloured moire hat with a wide white brim, or a velvet biretta with a white linen coif featuring a row of pearls.
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Wedding customs
Medieval weddings were often not driven by romance, but by the need to forge alliances between families, build social links, and secure profitable land or wealth. The bride's family would offer a dowry—part of the woman's inheritance from her parents—to the groom's family, which was seen as compensation for "taking her off their hands". The dowry was usually presented publicly during the wedding ceremony.
Arranged marriages were common, especially among the nobility, who sought to exchange property or strengthen business relationships. Marriages were typically arranged by the parents of the bride and groom when the children were anywhere from twelve to seventeen years old. Lower-class couples were more likely to marry for love, but even they could be swayed by a substantial dowry or landholding. In some cases, the couple would not meet until their wedding day.
Before a wedding, a notice was posted on the church door, stating the names of the couple to be married. This allowed anyone with grounds for prohibiting the marriage—such as the couple being too closely related—to come forward. If the couple had a close relative in common, it was considered incest and grounds for prohibiting the marriage. After 1215, the rules were relaxed, and only those with a great-great-grandparent in common were prohibited from marrying.
The wedding ceremony would take place outside the church door, with the man standing on the right side and the woman on the left, facing the door. The priest would ask if anyone present knew of any reason why the couple should not be married, and then the couple would be given a chance to confess any prohibitions themselves. After the ceremony, the couple would enter the church for a nuptial mass.
The bride would often wear cosmetics and pay close attention to plucking her hairline, as high foreheads were considered a standard of beauty at the time. Brides typically wore their hair loose, sometimes with a floral wreath on top. They usually wore dresses in deep jewel tones, with blue being a common choice as it symbolized purity. Wealthier brides wore luxurious fabrics like velvet, silk, and satin, often in rich hues of red and gold.
After the ceremony, a feast was held, where the couple would drink wine and listen to love songs and poems performed by minstrels. The type of sweetened and decorated wedding cake that is popular today was not present during medieval weddings. Instead, the couple celebrated with a simple, unsweetened wheat-based bread. There was only one special wedding ritual involving food: guests would stack buns as high as possible in front of the newlyweds, and it was believed that prosperity would come if the couple could kiss over the stack.
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Wedding ceremonies
A medieval wedding ceremony was a grand affair, steeped in tradition and ritual. The wedding day commenced with a procession from the bride's home to the church, with the minstrels leading the way, playing various instruments, including bagpipes, the six-stringed viol, flutes, drums, and trumpets. The bride and groom, dressed in their finest attire, walked side by side, with the bride on the groom's left side, towards the church doors.
Upon arrival, the minstrels ceased their playing, and the wedding party lined up quietly outside the church. The priest, holding the wedding ring, stood before the closed doors, beneath the portico. The ceremony began with the priest addressing the congregation, asking if anyone had any objections to the marriage. This was a crucial moment, as there were several valid reasons for prohibiting a marriage, including consanguinity, monastic or religious vows, rape, adultery, and incest.
After ensuring no valid objections, the priest would then question the couple about any transgressions that might prohibit their union. The bride and groom would exchange vows and rings, placed on the fourth finger of the left hand, reciting: "In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost, with this ring I thee wed." The placement of the ring on the fourth finger held symbolic significance, stemming from a belief in the Middle Ages that a vein ran directly from the heart to this finger.
Following the exchange of vows and rings, the priest would usher the couple, their attendants, and the best man into the church for the nuptial mass. The bride and groom knelt before the priest at the altar, with a canopy held over their heads by attendants. After the mass concluded, the attendants removed the canopy, and the priest bestowed a kiss of peace upon the groom, who, in turn, kissed his bride. The priest then closed the wedding with a final blessing.
As the newly married couple emerged from the church, they were greeted by the choir chanting "Angus Dei." The wedding festivities continued with a grand feast, where the couple drank wine and listened to love songs and poems performed by minstrels. The bride's clothing was considered a token of good luck, and guests would chase her at the end of the celebration, attempting to snatch a piece of her fabric. The concept of a wedding cake, as we know it today, with its sweetened icing, was not a part of medieval wedding traditions.
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Wedding dissolutions
In the Middle Ages, there were very few reasons that a wedding could be dissolved. One reason was if either the man or woman were not of legal age—12 for girls and 14 for boys. If the husband or wife had previously taken a monastic or religious vow, or if they were not Christian, the marriage would also be dissolved.
The process of marriage in the medieval period was quite different from today. The family of the bride would give a dowry, or donation, to the groom at the time of the marriage. After the marriage was arranged, a wedding notice was posted on the door of the church. The notice was put up to ensure that there were no grounds for prohibiting the marriage. The notice stated who was to be married, and if anyone knew any reasons the two could not marry, they were to come forward. If the reason was valid, the wedding would be prohibited. There were several reasons for prohibiting a marriage, including consanguinity, meaning the couple was too closely related. If the boy or girl had taken a monastic or religious vow, the marriage was also prohibited. Rape, adultery, and incest were also grounds for prohibiting a marriage, but they were not grounds for a divorce. A couple could not be married during a time of fasting, such as Lent or Advent, and a couple could not be married by someone who had killed someone.
The ceremony would take place outside the church door before entering for a nuptial mass. During the ceremony, the man stood on the right side, and the woman stood on the left, facing the door of the church. The priest would begin by asking if anyone present knew of any reason why the couple should not be married. The priest would then ask the bride and groom so they could confess any reasons for prohibiting their marriage.
While weddings in the Middle Ages were often not based on love, many of the items and rituals that took place during the wedding have become traditions and are practiced today. The marriage ceremony, for example, contains much of the same wording that was used in the Middle Ages. Today, the man and woman stand on the same sides of the altar as they did then. The wedding ceremony also includes a ring exchange, and the ring is placed on the fourth finger, the same finger it was placed on during the Middle Ages.
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Frequently asked questions
Medieval weddings were a lot different from modern weddings. Weddings in the Middle Ages were often not based on love but on necessity or business. Marriages were seen as alliances between families, and dowries were exchanged publicly during the wedding ceremony. The bride and groom stood beside each other, facing the church door, and a priest would officiate the ceremony. The bride stood on the left, and the groom on the right, due to the belief that Eve was created from Adam's left rib. The bride's clothing was considered lucky, and guests would chase her at the end of the wedding to grab a piece of cloth.
The church played a significant role in medieval weddings. The ceremony usually began outside the church doors, with the priest asking the couple and the public if there was any reason to oppose the marriage. After the ceremony outside, the couple would enter the church for a nuptial mass.
The legal age for marriage in medieval times was 12 for girls and 14 for boys.
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