Once A Rogue is another one of my Regency stories, released in The People’s Friend Special No. 201 this month. It was written alongside Trading Places only this time a young woman must stop her step-sister from destroying her good name…
Whenever an elopement takes place in a Regency story, it is often said they went to Gretna Green. It's mentioned several
times in Jane Austen’s novels. I never realised why this place was so popular
until now.
Back in 1754, England passed a Marriage Act that
couples could not marry outside a church or without parental permission if one
of them was under 21, most likely to stop scandal and fortune hunters. However,
Scotland did not have this stipulation and handfasting still took place.
An English couple wanting to defy disapproving family
members could elope to Scotland, perhaps even with the extra drama of a furious
father or love rival giving chase. Gretna Green was considered the best place
as it was closest to the Scottish/English border.
What I really liked was the idea of anvil priests.
Handfasting could be witnessed by anyone, not just a priest. Often these
breathless, desperate couples would go to the blacksmith who would, for drink
and coin, witness the marriage. He would strike his anvil when the deed was
done.
In 1940, handfasting was no longer viewed as a valid way of getting married. However, even with the need for anvil priests gone, Gretna Green is still a hugely popular destination for marriages with its romantic backstory and views.
At the end of Once A Rogue, while the church bells ring, the wedding garter is thrown. Just like the bride’s bouquet, catching the garter toss promised marriage, though for a lucky bachelor rather than a maid.
This bit of
folklore is believed to have originated from the Dark Ages, where wedding guests chased
the bride and groom to their bedroom, trying to pull the garter from the
bride’s leg. Not exactly something I would fancy! Nowadays, the bride will pull
the garter off herself and fling it into the crowd—how much leg she shows is up
to her.
