WeddingsThe goal of every father was to make successful marriage matches for his children. Through marriage, families could gain allies, land, status, or even money. A marriage could affect every aspect of life for the two families involved.
Courtship was usually initiated by a young man: though women couldn’t pick their suitors, the might have the option to turn one down. If a courtship went favorable, a betrothal would follow. The couple would make solemn vows regarding their intent to wed, and exchange rings and kisses. Betrothals were serious vows, not to be taken lightly. If a man backed out of a Betrothal, he paid a fine to the woman’s family. If a woman cancelled a betrothal, she must surrender her dowry to the man’s family. Two to four weeks after the betrothal vows, an actual wedding would take place. Wedding ceremonies were generally attended only by a priest and the families being joined. These took place in either the town cathedral or the private chapel in a family’s home. Before the ceremony began, the bride’s family would present her dowry to the groom. Following this, wedding vows were exchanged and a priest would bless the union. Though wedding ceremonies themselves were small affairs, the party afterwards certainly made up for it. Wedding feasts were an elaborate affair with guests, musicians, entertainment, and food and wine. Guests would flock to the bride’s family’s home for feasting and revelry. After the feast ended, the bridal processional began. Symbolic of the bride’s transition from her family to the groom’s family, the wedded families and feast guests would walk from the bride’s home to the house that the married couple would inhabit. The bride and groom led the processional, walking through the streets of Verona to their new life. Behind them, the guests carried the bride’s dowry chest, the wedding cake, and the cassone: a chest given as a gift to the bride from her family, filled with family heirlooms and things from the bride’s infancy. The wedding processional stopped at the bridge and groom’s new home. Parties and GalasWeddings weren't the only occasion for a feast. Upper class families would throw a few parties a year, to bring together their extended families and allies. These were formal affairs: they echoed the wedding party, though usually a bit smaller. Masked balls were particularly popular in this era. Traditionally, the party-goers would wear their best livery, along with a plaster whole or half face mask. At sometime during the night, the masks came off and identities were revealed. Often, the stylish masks worn by the attendees didn't do much to conceal identity, but the mystery and allure of a masked ball kept this party tradition going well into the seventeenth century.
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A cassoni originally presented to a Florentine bride in the late 1460sA cassoni from Venice, approximately 1500A plain betrothal ring - a typically male style - from sixteenth century EuropeAn Italian betrothal ring, intended for a lady, from the early 16th centuryAn early sixteenth century engraving, depicting partygoers at a masked ball |
Information Drawn From:
Bowd, Stephen D. Venice's Most Loyal City: Civic Identity in Renaissance Brescia. Cambridge, MA: Harvard UP, 2010. Print.
Gordon, Bruce, and Marshall, Peter. The Place of the Dead: Death and Remembrance in Late Medieval and Early Modern Europe. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge UP, 2000. Print.
Humfrey, Peter. Venice and the Veneto. New York: Cambridge UP, 2007. Print.
Gordon, Bruce, and Marshall, Peter. The Place of the Dead: Death and Remembrance in Late Medieval and Early Modern Europe. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge UP, 2000. Print.
Humfrey, Peter. Venice and the Veneto. New York: Cambridge UP, 2007. Print.