Clandestine weddings at the Fleet Prison, c. 1710–1750: who married there?

In: Continuity and change: a journal of social structure, law and demography in past societies, Band 32, Heft 3, S. 349-377

Abstract

AbstractDuring the first half of the eighteenth century, thousands of Londoners (and people from the rest of England) married clandestinely at the Fleet Prison. More weddings were celebrated there than any other location in England. This article will examine quantitatively who was marrying there, detailing their premarital status, origin and occupation. It will show that Londoners who married at the Fleet were broadly representative of London's population topography and occupational structure. The article also examines the non-Londoners who married at the Fleet, and shows that by c. 1750 the Fleet was hosting at least 10 per cent of all marriages in England.