ABSTRACT
This chapter takes a long view of religious-only marriages, showing that such marriages are not a modern phenomenon, nor one confined to any single religious group, but have recurred over time within different communities. It discusses how in the 1820s and 1830s Catholic religious-only marriages were identified as occurring within Irish immigrant communities; such religious-only marriages were a catalyst for reform in 1836 but even after its passage some Catholics still had a religious-only marriage. It then goes on to consider how in the late nineteenth century it was Jewish immigrants from Eastern Europe who were thought to be marrying in the form that was familiar to them rather than ascertaining what was required for a marriage under English law. Finally, the chapter shows that many of the earliest Muslim marriages in England and Wales were located within the legal framework, either by being combined with a legally binding ceremony, or, later, by being conducted in a registered mosque. It concludes by reflecting on how the same narratives and explanations have recurred in relation to different religious groups at different times.
