English Weddings
With the British influence throughout much of the world, many of the customs from English Weddings have been adopted by other societies. This makes English Weddings very interesting to those of us from former British colonies.
Both the bride and the groom will celebrate the night before their wedding with their friends at a wild party with lots of drinking and exotic members of the opposite sex. Sometimes the male or female revelers will go away and party for a weekend.
Similar to the American Christian tradition, the British have a wedding rehearsal. Unlike the American tradition, the wedding party doesn’t partake in a lavish meal afterwards.
The English brides wedding gown tends to be plainer and less extravagant than the American version. Of course, the gown will be the white. The bridesmaid dresses are paid for by the bride. There is no “wedding color” and both mothers are free to wear whatever they look best in. Both the groom and the best man wear their finest suites with white shirts instead of tuxedos.
It is bad luck for the groom to see his future wife in her wedding dress. The tradition of wearing something old, something new, something borrowed and "something blue has its origins in England. The bride wears a horseshoe for good luck. After the wedding, the horseshoe is hung over the entranceway.
The ride to the church is by a Rolls Royce or rare stylish car. Many British roads are very curvy, making it difficult to use limousines. When the wedding party nears the church, the flower girl walks in front of the wedding party, gentling tossing flower petals along the way signifying a road to happiness for the happy couple. The wedding party has many bridesmaids but usually no ushers. The church bells ring one tune as the bride and groom goes into the church, a different melody plays as the newly married couple departs.
The English wedding party usually begins around noon. The meal that follows is referred to as”The Wedding Breakfast.” While the meal is in the afternoon, the assumption is that the bride and groom were too nervous to eat, and therefore this would be their first meal of their wedding day. At the event, they have food, drinks and music. The affair is not as lavish as a typical American wedding but is a sit down catered affair.
The fruitcake is the customary British wedding cake. The top layer (called the "christening cake”) is saved and eaten after the birth of the first child.
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