I have read many stories from people in the US and South America about this and apparently such cases, although not the majority, happened quite often. But what about Europe? Was this common (and even legal) in your country? Do you know of any such cases? If you look at the legislation, then in some European countries the minimum marriage age was quite low, in Ireland it was 12 years old until 1975. But did anyone get married at such an early age in practic?
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Probably depends on area but I also think it’s very very long ago it was “normal” at a low age. Seems like 18-20 have been the norm and not so much under or over. You got married and got children when the age was right and that was it but for an 18 woman to marry a male up to 28 don’t seem was too uncommon.
I sometimes browse old birth/death/marriage records, and I can tell you I have never seen a 15-year-old bride in there. Even 18 was not that common. Most of the time, it was around 20+. I am talking about Western and Central Bohemia.
My (great)grandmothers all married in their 20s. I have a (moderately) Protestant grandmother and a Roman Catholic Grandmother – no difference.
Don’t forget that the US got most of our religious fanatics as immigrants (even from the very start with the Piligrim Fathers), I think that will be definitely a factor.
It certainly was a bit lower than today, but from what I’ve read the age at which the post-war generations got married was actually the outlier. From what I understand, at least in the Netherlands, mid to late 20s has always been the norm with the exception for the 1950s-70s when it was more towards lower 20s on average.
One grandmother was 23 when she got married (grandfather was 27). My other grandmother was 28 (grandfather was 23).
Not sure about my great grandmothers but I think they would have been in their early twenties. This was in England.