Las Vegas Scottish, or how to get married in five minutes

2024 Author: Richard Flannagan | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-15 23:55

Few have heard of the small town of Gretna Green, which today is one of the most popular tourist attractions in Scotland. Long before the advent of Las Vegas, this place was known for its "five minutes" weddings. This is what attracted tourists here.

Gretna Green, a tiny village near the Scottish border, has also been a popular destination for runaways and secret marriages. Even Jane Austen mentioned the Scottish town in Pride and Prejudice. And today Gretna Green is still one of the most popular places for "quick" weddings. More than 5,000 such weddings are held here every year.

It all began in 1753 with the adoption by the English Parliament of the "Church Marriage Act" (aka "Lord Hardwick's Marriage Act"), which was intended to reduce the number of clandestine marriages in England and Wales.

According to this law, no person under the age of 21 could marry without the consent of his parents or outside the church. But in Scotland, boys were allowed to marry at 14 years old, and girls at only 12 years old without parental consent, and they did not even need an official priest, but the presence of only two witnesses was enough. Gretna Green was the first point that people came across when traveling from England to Scotland, and she lay right on the way to Edinburgh. Therefore, the village quickly became a haven for runaway couples who wanted to get married as soon as possible before their parents interfered.

Since there was a smithy at the very edge of the village, therefore, it was the blacksmith and his apprentice who first of all turned to the young people for help in the wedding. So the local blacksmith Joseph Paisley became the first "pastor" to tie the knot dozens of young lovers in the eighteenth century, for a fee of "a couple of whiskey or a few guineas." Soon, the smithy, and the whole village, became famous throughout England thanks to the many scandals associated with many girls from aristocratic families. But the weddings continued, and the blacksmith even introduced a new tradition - at the end of the ceremony, he beat the anvil with a hammer, as if cementing the union.

Following the blacksmith, other local residents began to offer similar services. Since the couples in love were often pursued by angry parents who did not want to allow marriage, the residents of Gretna Green began to set up patrols on the outskirts of the village to warn the fugitives about the approach of their parents. Over the years, the phrase "A Gretna Green Wedding" has been synonymous with any escape from the home of lovers looking to get married as quickly as possible. Since 1929, Scotland has passed a law according to which both boys and girls have the right to marry from the age of 16, but parental consent is still not required.

In England and Wales, the age for marriage is now 16 with parental consent and 18 without parental consent. But Gretna Green's folklore and traditions live on. Today, there are several wedding venues in and around Gretna Green located in former churches and purpose-built chapels where ceremonies are held over iconic anvils. Gretna Green hosts one in six Scottish weddings today. An 18th century writer, Thomas Pennant, described the fugitive village as follows: This is a resort for all lovers whose union was banned by parents and guardians. Here a fisherman, carpenter or blacksmith can marry a young couple in a couple of minutes for a couple of sips of whiskey.