Parental consent 1944

[information]

Could anyone tell me at what age a girl could marry in England in 1944, with or without her parent's permission?

[dot.hawkes]

It was I believe 21 without consent and under 21 a licence had to be applied for from the local registrar with the father/guardian giving permission for anyone under 21.

Some marriages therefore have the words married by license as opposed to married by banns under the categories, but this can be for a number of reasons, not just being underage.

My ex husbands gt gt grandmother however, gave her age as 'full' |(which meant 21+ and is a common term in the age column on marriage certs) but infact sghe was only 15. Her father was deceased and so I guess another relative gave permission , either knowingly swearing falsley or not. It is possible a relative of her husband to be actually stood for her.

[dot.hawkes]

just to add, up until the early 1750s, it was legal for girls to marry at 14 and boys at 12, (I opften get that the wrong way rouind) that stopped with the Hardwicke Act, amazingly it was more the gentry classes that used to marry off their sprogs at such a young age to secure a portion (dowry) or inheritance, as peasants tended to be in apprenticeships and were not free to marry until they had finished their term of apprenticeship, that was from age 14 to 21 usually.