Marriage by Proxy

[CyrilVladisla]

Marriage by proxy is a wedding in which one or both of the individuals being united are not physically present. They are usually being represented by other persons.
On April 19, 1777 Archduchess Maria Antonia (Marie Antoinette) of Austria was married by proxy to the Dauphin of France at the Augustinian Church in Vienna. Her brother Archduke Ferdinand stood in for the Dauphin.
In a royal marriage by proxy, who picks the person to represent the absent bride/groom?

[CyrilVladisla]

On June 15, 1559 the Duke of Alva arrived to claim Princess Elisabeth of France by proxy for his master King Philip II of Spain. On June 21 the proxy wedding took place. The young bride did not depart for the Spanish court until the autumn.

[An Ard Ri]

Élisabeth de Valois was just 14 years old at the time,the Franco-Spanish wedding was arranged as part of the the Peace of Cateau Cambrésis between Henri II of France and Phillip II. The departure of Élisabeth to Spain was a result of the death of her father in a jousting tournament and her mother,now the French queen Regent delayed her eldest daughters departure .

[Kataryn]

Originally Posted by CyrilVladisla

Marriage by proxy is a wedding in which one or both of the individuals being united are not physically present. They are usually being represented by other persons.
On April 19, 1777 Archduchess Maria Antonia (Marie Antoinette) of Austria was married by proxy to the Dauphin of France at the Augustinian Church in Vienna. Her brother Archduke Ferdinand stood in for the Dauphin.
In a royal marriage by proxy, who picks the person to represent the absent bride/groom?

I guess the ruler of the country the bride was from. Normally her father, brother or guardian. The representative of the groom was a close relative of the bride or the groom.

In these times it was an absolute no-go to send an unmarried princess into a foreign country without her parents when she was of marriageable age. They exchanged little princesses to be raised with their future husbands at their future courts, yes. But never older princesses! The marriage by proxy made her into a married wife on her way to her husband's lands - completely different situation.

[CyrilVladisla]

King Charles I of England and Henrietta Maria of France were officially married by proxy on May 1, 1625 in France. The bride wore a gold wedding dress and recited her vows to a French nobleman at Notre Dame Cathedral while Charles remained in England.

[CyrilVladisla]

Elizabeth Charlotte, the daughter of Karl Ludwig, Elector Palatine and Charlotte (of Hesse-Cassel), Electress Palatine married Philippe, Duke of Orleans by proxy at Metz on November 16, 1671, with the bride's portion settled at 32,000 florins.

[An Ard Ri]

Originally Posted by CyrilVladisla

Elizabeth Charlotte, the daughter of Karl Ludwig, Elector Palatine and Charlotte (of Hesse-Cassel), Electress Palatine married Philippe, Duke of Orleans by proxy at Metz on November 16, 1671, with the bride's portion settled at 32,000 florins.

That ceremony and the conversion of the Princess to Roman Catholicism was performed at Metz Cathedral by its bishop,Georges d'Aubusson de La Feuillade. Elisabeth Charlotte and Philippe d'Orléans were married in person a few days later at the chapel of the Bishop of Châlons-sur-Marne. Madame d'Orléans and she was now known was now the second highest ranking female after her sister in law the queen in France.

[CyrilVladisla]

King James II of England was married in a proxy ceremony to his second wife Princess Mary of Modena in Italy on September 30, 1673. Henry Mordaunt, Earl of Peterborough stood in as the groom's proxy.

[Countessmeout]

Originally Posted by CyrilVladisla

King James II of England was married in a proxy ceremony to his second wife Princess Mary of Modena in Italy on September 30, 1673. Henry Mordaunt, Earl of Peterborough stood in as the groom's proxy.

The earl had been appointed by the then Duke of York as his ambassador extraordinary. He was originally to go to Austria to meet with Archduchess Claudia Felicitas but before he even crossed the channel, the chances of the marriage were nixed. James sent him to meet with several other women who were being considered to be his bride, and ascertain the best match. That is how he ended up standing proxy for James when the marriage was made, as he had not only helped select Mary but also negotiated the contract.

He had served as groom of the stole to James both as Duke and later king.

They were married November 23, 1673 in person. She is said to have cried when she saw her husband who was not only 25 years older but scarred by small pox and had a stutter.

[JR76]

The last time, and actually one of the few times it happened, that a Swedish royal was married by proxy was when on the 22 May 1823 Princess Josephine of Leuchtenberg married Crown Prince Oscar of Sweden and Norway in a Catholic ceremony in the Leuchtenberg Palace in München. Josephine's uncle Prince Karl Theodor of Bayern was the stand-in for the Crown Prince. The couple married in person in a Lutheran ceremony that was held in Stockholm on 19 June 1823.

[CyrilVladisla]

In 1502 a marriage was arranged between James IV, King of Scots and Margaret Tudor, the daughter of King Henry VII of England. A proxy marriage was held on January 25, 1503 at Richmond Palace with Patrick Hepburn, 1st Earl of Bothwell standing in for James IV.

[An Ard Ri]

Originally Posted by CyrilVladisla

In 1502 a marriage was arranged between James IV, King of Scots and Margaret Tudor, the daughter of King Henry VII of England. A proxy marriage was held on January 25, 1503 at Richmond Palace with Patrick Hepburn, 1st Earl of Bothwell standing in for James IV.

The actual wedding took place on the 8th of August 1503 at Holyrood Abbey and was performed by the Archbishops of both Glasgow and York.

[CyrilVladisla]

Originally Posted by An Ard Ri

The actual wedding took place on the 8th of August 1503 at Holyrood Abbey and was performed by the Archbishops of both Glasgow and York.

Why was an Archbishop of Scotland and an Archbishop of England necessary to perform the wedding?

[Alison H]

One from the bride's country and one from the groom's country, to have a representative of each - they didn't actually *need* both, but the Archbishop of York would have been there to represent the English authorities.

[An Ard Ri]

Originally Posted by CyrilVladisla

Why was an Archbishop of Scotland and an Archbishop of England necessary to perform the wedding?

I would have thought that was obvious the bride was English and groom was Scottish.

[Kataryn]

I keep thinking about that... Hm, do any of you know of a case where an unmarried princess was kidnapped on her way to her future husband and then married by her abductor? A case so well-known it became the reason for the marriage-by-proxy idea? Or was it just the "moral" atitude to never let a princess travelling unmarried through foreign countries, even when chaperonned? Liselotte from the Palatinate only went as far as Metz "unmarried" and That was due to the show they had to act in for the sake of her father's connection to the protestant princes of Germany. Karl Ludwig of the Palatinate was one of the leading protestant princes in Germany, but he was afraid his daughter might become an "alt Jungfergen" (little old spinster - that's what Liselotter herself commented ina letter), so when the widow of one of his brother, the french "Princesse Palatine" (Anna Gonzaga de Nemours) proposed marriage between Philippe d'Orleans, the French king's brother and Liselotte, he agreed and let Liselotte take off to Lorraine under the Chaperonage of Anna Gonzage. There, in Metz, she was instructed in Catholic religion and converted to Catholicism. Which officially "surprised" her father but known as the "most tolerant of the German princes", he accepted and Philippe's offer of marriage right after that.

[An Ard Ri]

Originally Posted by Alison H

One from the bride's country and one from the groom's country, to have a representative of each - they didn't actually *need* both, but the Archbishop of York would have been there to represent the English authorities.

Dr. Thomas Savage the then Archbishop of York was also a close friend of Henry VII and had served as his chaplain so its quite possible Margaret knew him too. He rose quickly on the ecclesiastical ladder from Dean to Bishop of Rochester, then Bishop of London to Archbishop of York.

The Archbishop later married Arthur Prince of Wales to Katherine of Aragon.
He died in 1507 and is buried at York Minster

[CyrilVladisla]

In 1785 the marriage capitulation of Infante John (King John VI) of Portugal and Infanta Carlota Joaquina of Spain was signed in the throne room of the Spanish court. A proxy marriage occurred afterwards.

[King of the Jungle]

It seems the groom is always the one not present while the bride makes the vow to a proxy.
Did the groom also made a public vow of marriage at the same time in his home chapel?

[SLV]

Originally Posted by King of the Jungle

It seems the groom is always the one not present while the bride makes the vow to a proxy.
Did the groom also made a public vow of marriage at the same time in his home chapel?

Yes, I believe they did.