![]() Etiquette dictated that guests address the bride first, unless they were only acquainted with the groom, in which case they congratulated the groom and were then introduced to the bride. Bridesmaids stood to the left and right of the couple, while ushers guided the guests. In early Victorian times, the maid of honor (or first bridesmaid) stood near the bride to assist her. The parents congratulated the couple first, then stood nearby. In the West, they mimicked the East, especially New York and Boston Society.Ī special and elaborately decorated corner was reserved in the bride's home for receiving her guests. In the Eastern United States, they emulated the English in their ceremonies. There, the couple received the guests and accepted congratulations. ![]() It was an English custom to have a Noon ceremony with the breakfast thirty minutes later at the bride's home. This could be a bell, dove, wishbone, or any other good luck symbol.īecause of the early hour for weddings, the reception was traditionally a breakfast. In America, a good luck symbol was hung over the spot where the couple exchanged their vows. A profusion of white, and another color according to the theme, abounded in the bride's home, adorning doorways, balustrades, windows and fireplaces. If the ceremony was at home, (as was popular in the 1890s) the decorations were no less elaborate. The wedding carriage awaiting the bride and groom was drawn by four white horses. From a custom dating back to Roman times when nuts were thrown after the departing couple, the practice continued, but in the form of rice, grain or birdseed, a symbol of fertility. The bride's parents were the first to leave the church, and the best man the last after he paid the clergyman for his services. It was considered bad taste to acknowledge friends and acquaintances. It was considered good luck for the ring to drop during the ceremony, thus all evil spirits were shaken out.Īfter the ceremony, the bride and groom walked out without looking left or right. There were few double ring ceremonies in the Victorian era. The wedding ring was usually a plain gold band with the initials of the couple and the date of their wedding engraved inside. Church bells pealed forth as the couple entered the church, not only to make the populace aware of the ceremony taking place, but also to scare away any evil forces lurking nearby. For the wealthier, a grey horse pulling the wedding carriage was considered good luck. In England, a country bride and her wedding party walked to church on a carpet of blossoms to assure a happy path through life. Guests in mourning entered the church quietly and hid amongst the crowd, so as not to cast negative aspersions on the couple. The servants' favors were handmade by the bride and included a special memento if she'd known them from childhood. Later in the era, even the servants and horses wore flowers. ![]() ![]() In early Victorian England, the bridesmaids also made favors and pinned them on the sleeves and shoulders of the guests as they left the ceremony. In America, ushers wore boutonnieres in their lapels. In England, the bride pinned favors of white ribbon, flowers, lace and silver leaves on the ushers' shoulders. One usher was usually in charge of matters at church, while the others went to the bride's house for their favors. Flowers decorated the church, the arrangements growing more elaborate as the decades wore on-from potted palms to festoons of evergreens and blossoms. After the ceremony, the couple signed their name in the parish register in the vestry. The clergyman and parish clerk were in attendance. In the 1850s, weddings were almost always held in church, and it was customary to use the bride's parish. The marriage ceremony took place either at home or in church, with many guests or few. Southern American weddings, however, were almost always at 6:00 p.m. In New York in 1890, half after three was also a fashionable hour. and Noon because it was an English custom. In the Eastern United States, the fashionable hours were between 10:00 a.m. By the late 1880s, permissible hours were extended until 3:00 p.m. Before the 1880s, a couple was required by law to have a morning ceremony.
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