Chapter 25

[841]Anglo-Saxonweotuma:Ælfred,Ecc. Laws, 12, 29:Schmid,Gesetze, 58, 62.Schroederuses the termMuntschatz, which, however, is only found in Friesic law:Sohm,Eheschliessung, 33, note. Some form ofweotumaappears in many dialects: Old Germanwidemo, giving rise toWitthum; Longobardianmeta; Burgundianwittemon; Friesicwetma(wethma,weetma); Alamannianwidem:SchroederGüterrecht, I, 46, 47, 24;Schmid,op. cit., 675;Grimm,Rechtsalterthümer, 422-24;Young, inEssays, 165;Weinhold,Deutsche Frauen, I, 320, note, 336,passim;Schroeder,Rechtsgeschichte, 291, note, 161.Cf.Eckhardt, "Das Witthum," inZeitsch. für deutsches Recht, X, 437 ff.;Hellwald,Die mensch. Familie, 315, 316;Smith,La famille chez les Burgondes, 5 ff.

[842]On the tutelage of woman in early Germanic law seeGrimm,Rechtsalterthümer, 447 ff., 465;Sohm,Eheschliessung, 22, 50 ff.;Weinhold,Deutsche Frauen, I, 193 ff.; II, 27;Gide,Étude sur la cond. privée de la femme, 280 ff., 339;Rive,Vormundschaft, I, 218 ff.;Kraut,Vormundschaft, I, 171-86;Leber,Des coutumes, 22 ff.;Reinsch,Stellung und Leben der deutschen Frau, 4 ff.;Habicht,Altd. Verlobung, 8 ff., 68;Friedberg,Eheschliessung, 17 ff.,passim;Schroeder,Güterrecht, I, 1 ff.;idem,Rechtsgeschichte, 64 ff.,passim;Brunner,Rechtsgeschichte, I,75,89 ff.;Dargun,Mutterrecht und Raubehe, 23 ff.;Kohler, "Die Ehe mit und ohne Mundium,"ZVR., VI, 321 ff.;Waitz, inSitzungsberichte der preuss. Akademie, 1886, 375 ff.;Buckstaff, inAnnals of Am. Acad., IV, 233 ff.;Stobbe, "Die Aufhebung der väterlichen Gewalt nach dem Recht des Mittelalters;" inBeiträge, 1-24, reviewing and criticisingKraut; Zoepfl, (R.),De tutela mulierum germanic. (Heidelberg, 1828);Emminghaus,De praecipuis germ. fem.(Jena, 1756); andZoepfl(H.),Deutsche Rechtsgeschichte, III, 1-4.Young, "Anglo-Saxon Family Law,"Essays, 148 ff., denies thatpatria potestasexisted in German law; and a similar view is taken byAdams,Political Essays, 31 ff.; butHeusler,Institutionen, II, 275, takes the opposite view.Cf.Smith,La famille chez les Burgondes, 13 ff.Ficker,Untersuchungen zur Rechtsgeschichte, III, 401 ff., insists that the sex-tutelage (Geschlechtsvormundschaft) did not exist under Frank law.

[843]That the betrothal is a contract relative to themundis stoutly maintained byDahn,Das Weib in altgerm. Recht und Leben, 4 ff., who absolutely rejects wife-purchase, declaring such an idea to be "abominable and impossible" ("abscheulich und unmöglich"). This theory is also held byKraut,VormundschaftI, 171;Schroeder,Güterrecht, I, 27 ff., 38, 79; yetSchroeder,Rechtsgeschichte, 68, 291 ff., regards the German marriage as in form a purchase of the bride.Rive,Vormundschaft, I, 258 ff.,passim, denies that the betrothal has any relation to themund, and rejects entirely the view that the sale-marriage ever existed among the Germans.Habicht,Altdeutsche Verlobung, 8 ff., 12, admits that originally themundwas a "property right" and the wife a "thing," though in the earliest written sources she appears asRechtssubject.Sohm,Eheschliessung, 22, regards theWitthumas the price of themund; but in hisTrauung und Verlobung, 15, 16, he drops this view and declares the betrothal to be a contract to "give the bride in marriage," or, more directly, a "Kauf der Jungfrau."Friedberg,Eheschliessung, 17, 18, appears to hold that it was themundwhich was conveyed; but elsewhere he seems to favor the opposite view for the early period. See hisVerlobung und Trauung, 7 ff.;Lehrbuch, 339; andZur Geschichte, 362 ff. Pollock and Maitland,Hist. of Eng. Law, II, 362, declare that "whatever guesses we may make about a remoter age, the 'bride-sale,' of which Tacitus had heard, was evidently no sale of a chattel. It was very different from the sale of a slave girl; it was a sale of themund, the protectorship over the woman."Gide,Étude sur la cond. privée de la femme, 196-215, 335 ff.; andHenry Adams,Historical Essays, 31, are decidedly of the same opinion.Buckstaff, inAnnals of Am. Acad., IV, 234, doubts whether the German woman was ever looked upon as a chattel; andOpet, "Die erbrechtliche Stellung der Weiber in der Zeit des Volksrechts," inGierke'sUntersuchungen, XXV, takes a very favorable view of woman's right of inheritance.On the other hand, the betrothal is regarded as originally an actual sale of the bride byGlasson,Hist. du droit et des inst. de l'Angleterre, I, 116, 117;Grosse,Die Formen der Familie, 223, 234;Siegel,Rechtsgeschichte, 450-52;Weinhold,Deutsche Frauen, I, 320;Heusler,Institutionen279 ff.;Loening,Geschichte des deutschen Kirchenrechts, II, 578;Hofmann,Ueber den Verlobungs- und Trauring, 849, 850;Leber,Des coutumes, 22 ff.;Lamprecht,Deutsche Geschichte, I, 104, 105;Sehling,Unterscheidung der Verlöbnisse, 32, 33;Grimm,Rechtsalterthümer, 420 ff.;Davoud-Oghlou,Législation des anciens Germains, I, xl-xli;Hellwald,Die mensch. Familie(apparently), 315-18;Dargun,Mutterrecht und Raubehe, 24 ff.; and especiallyBrunner,Rechtsgeschichte, I, 74 ff.Lehmann,Verlobung und Hochzeit, 7 ff., 78, 79, finds fainter traces of the sale-marriage among the Scandinavians than among the North Germans.Kohler, "Die Ehe mit und ohne Mundium,"ZVR., VI, 321 ff., holds that marriage withoutmundon the part of the husband is the marriage of mother-right as opposed to the laterPaternitätsrecht. See alsoKohler, inZVR., III, 354; andWaitz, "Ueber die Bedeutung des Mundium im deutschen Recht,"Sitzungsberichte der preuss. Akad., 1886, 375 ff., for a discussion of the meaning and content ofmund. In general,cf.Königswarter,Hist. de l'organisation de la famille, 121 ff.;Laboulaye,Condition des femmes, 112 ff.;Strack,Aus dem deutschen Familienleben, I, 17 ff.;Beauchet,Mariage dans le droit islandais, 3 ff., 12 ff.

On the other hand, the betrothal is regarded as originally an actual sale of the bride byGlasson,Hist. du droit et des inst. de l'Angleterre, I, 116, 117;Grosse,Die Formen der Familie, 223, 234;Siegel,Rechtsgeschichte, 450-52;Weinhold,Deutsche Frauen, I, 320;Heusler,Institutionen279 ff.;Loening,Geschichte des deutschen Kirchenrechts, II, 578;Hofmann,Ueber den Verlobungs- und Trauring, 849, 850;Leber,Des coutumes, 22 ff.;Lamprecht,Deutsche Geschichte, I, 104, 105;Sehling,Unterscheidung der Verlöbnisse, 32, 33;Grimm,Rechtsalterthümer, 420 ff.;Davoud-Oghlou,Législation des anciens Germains, I, xl-xli;Hellwald,Die mensch. Familie(apparently), 315-18;Dargun,Mutterrecht und Raubehe, 24 ff.; and especiallyBrunner,Rechtsgeschichte, I, 74 ff.Lehmann,Verlobung und Hochzeit, 7 ff., 78, 79, finds fainter traces of the sale-marriage among the Scandinavians than among the North Germans.Kohler, "Die Ehe mit und ohne Mundium,"ZVR., VI, 321 ff., holds that marriage withoutmundon the part of the husband is the marriage of mother-right as opposed to the laterPaternitätsrecht. See alsoKohler, inZVR., III, 354; andWaitz, "Ueber die Bedeutung des Mundium im deutschen Recht,"Sitzungsberichte der preuss. Akad., 1886, 375 ff., for a discussion of the meaning and content ofmund. In general,cf.Königswarter,Hist. de l'organisation de la famille, 121 ff.;Laboulaye,Condition des femmes, 112 ff.;Strack,Aus dem deutschen Familienleben, I, 17 ff.;Beauchet,Mariage dans le droit islandais, 3 ff., 12 ff.

[844]Habicht,Altdeutsche Verlobung, 9, note, 68, insists that there is no practical difference between the sale of theVormundschaft, or protection, and the sale of the bride. SeeFicker,Untersuchungen zur Rechtsgeschichte, III, 393-419, who rejects the view that marriage has the same origin and character among all the German peoples.

[845]Æthelb., 77:Schmid,Gesetze, 8, 9.Liebermann, 7, translates: "Wenn jemand eine Jungfrau zur Ehe kauft." Another provision of this code reads: "If a free man lies with a free man's wife, let him buy her with her wergeld, and procure with his own property another woman and bring her home to him (the wronged husband)":Æthelred, 31:Schmid, 4, 5.Cf.Liebermann'sed., 5. SeeRoeder,Die Familie bei den Angelsachsen, 15 ff., 24 ff.

[846]Brunner,Rechtsgeschichte, I, 74: "Wife-purchase is yet known to the earlier East Frisian sources, and it was still practiced in Denmark in the fifteenth century. "Und wie im Mittelalter die Redensart eine Frau zu kaufen vielfach verbreitet war, so bezeichnet in Holland der Volksmund noch jetzt die Braut als 'verkocht' (verkauft)."

[847]"Dotem non uxor marito, sed uxori maritus offert. Intersunt parentes ac propinqui; probant munera, non ad delicias muliebres quaesita, nec quibus nova nupta comatur, sed boves et frenatum equum et scutum cum framea gladioque. In haec munera uxor accipitur, atque invicem ipsa armorum aliquid viro affert. Hoc maximum vinculum, haec arcana sacra, hos conjugales deos arbitrantur."—Tacitus,Germania, c. 18.

[848]Schroeder,Güterrecht, I, 24 ff., 82, 83, has shown that this is probable; and such is the view ofGrimm,Rechtsalt., 423, 424.Zoepfl,Deutsche Rechtsgeschichte, III, 4, believes Tacitus, "vermengt unverkennbar die verschiedenen Gaben, welche nach den Volksrechten des folgenden Zeitraumes unter der Bezeichnung alspretiumund Morgengabe hervortreten, wovon die eine dem Vater oder Vormund der Frau, und die andere dieser selbst gebührte;" and the arms given by the bride to the bridegroom he identifies with the later well-known ceremony of "girding" the youth on reaching majority.Cf.on this passage alsoHeusler,Institutionen, II, 277;Thudicum,Der altdeutsche Staat, 148, 186;Laboulaye,Cond. des femmes, 113;Siegel,Deutsche Rechtsgeschichte, 452;Gide,Étude sur la cond. privée de la femme, 205 ff.;Ficker,Untersuchungen zur Rechtsgeschichte, III, 416-19, 394, believes Tacitus here describes correctly theVidumsehe, the marriage in which theVidumor price came to the woman herself.

[849]Schroeder,Güterrecht, I, 50;idem,Rechtsgeschichte, 292;Sohm,Trauung und Verlobung, 15;Laboulaye,op. cit., 113.

[850]Æthelb., 77;Thorpe,Ancient Laws, 22, 23, and n. 3;Schmid,Gesetze, 8, 9.Liebermann, 7, renders the first part of this passage: "Wenn jemand eine Jungfrau [zur Ehe] kauft, sei sie durch [Braut] Kaufgeld [giltig] erkauft, falls das [Rechtsgeschäft] untrügerisch ist."Cf.Poeniten. Theod., XVI, 29;Thorpe, II, 11, orPoeniten. Theod., II, xii, § 34, inWasserschleben'sBussordnungen, 216; withConfess. Ecgb., § 20:Thorpe, II, 147; or the same inWasserschleben, 309. See alsoSchroeder,Güterrecht, I, 51 n. 9.

[851]Æthelb., 82, 83;Thorpe, I, 24, 25;Liebermann, 8;cf.Schroeder,op. cit., 51 n. 10.

[852]Opet,Die erbrechtliche Stellung der Weiber in der Zeit der Volksrechte, 82 ff. This monograph may be compared with that ofAmira,Erbenfolge und Verwandtschaftsgliederung nach dem altniederdeutschen Rechte, 83, 84.Roeder,Die Familie bei den Angelsachsen, 15 ff., takes a conservative position. In general on old English marriage seePhillips,Geschichte des angelsächs. Rechts, 129-33;Davoud-Oghlou, II, 355-60;Young, inEssays, 163 ff.;Friedberg,Eheschliessung, 33 ff.;Lingard,Anglo-Saxon Church(2d ed.), I, 6 ff.;Traill,Social England, I, 215, 216;Gide,Étude sur la cond. privée de la femme, 237, 196 ff.;Pollock and Maitland,Hist. of Eng. Law, II, 362 ff.;Buckstaff, inAnnals, IV, 233;Ludlow, inDict. of Christ. Ant., I, 203, 143. There is also a good discussion byGlasson,Hist. du droit et des inst. de l'Angleterre, I, 104-33; an account of the Anglo-Saxon bride inGrupen,De uxore theotisca, 221-55; interesting details inThrupp,The Anglo-Saxon Home, 19-76;Wright,Hist. of Doms. Manners and Sentiments, 53-56;Turner,Hist. of Manners and Landed Property of Anglo-Saxons, 108, 113-15; andJeaffreson,Brides and Bridals, I, 32-45, who gives an interesting discussion regarding the Anglo-Saxon woman, as a chattel subject to sale, even in the historical period. "To these ancient arrangements for the transference of women from their fathers to their matrimonial suitors, and for protecting the property in them against nefarious aggressors," he declares, "must be referred the barbarous spirit in which the law still persists in regarding a certain class of atrocious outrages on morality as mere infringements of private right. We reflect with astonishment on the conduct of our distant progenitors, who legalized traffic in womankind, but we persevere, so far as law is concerned, in dealing with the seducer as though his offence were nothing graver than a violation of personal privileges, for which a payment of money to one of the injured persons is the appropriate penalty" (I, 42, 43).

[853]An exhaustive study of these laws is, of course, not attempted. They are thoroughly exploited in the works of Sohm, Brunner, Schroeder, Friedberg, Dargun, and others.

[854]"Legati offerentes solidum et denarium, ut mos erat Francorum, eam partibus Chlodovei sponsant: placitum ad praesens petentes, ut ipsam ad conjugium traderet Chlodoveo."—Fredegarius,Greg. Turon. hist. epit., c. xviii: inGuadet and Taranne'sed., IV, 172, 173; or inGiesebrecht'strans., II, 273-75. CompareSohm,Eheschliessung, 32 n. 21;Schroeder,Güterrecht, I, 55 n. 3, and authorities cited;Meril,Des formes, 30;Leber,Des Coutumes, 24;Weinhold,Deutsche Frauen, I, 323;Friedberg,Eheschliessung, 19 n. 7. The price of a maid is not fixed in thelex salica; but in c. 44 the price of a widow is given (Behrend, 58); and elsewhere the woman'smundis fixed at 621⁄2solidi.Ficker,Untersuchungen zur Rechtsgeschichte, III, 400, 401, regards thearrha, not as a survival of the bride-price, but as a symbol of mutual troth.

[855]Sohm,op. cit., 29 n. 15;Friedberg,Eheschliessung, 19.Cf., however,Weinhold,op. cit., I, 323, who says that wife-purchase has disappeared from the Bavarian and Alamannian laws. SeePertz and Brunner'sed.,Mon. germ. hist.: legum, III, 183-496 (Leges baiuwariorum), 1-182 (Leges alamannorum).

[856]Puella emptaappears in thePactus alamannorum, 3, 29.Cf.Schroeder,Güterrecht, I, 17 ff.;Weinhold,op. cit., I, 323;Friedberg,op. cit., 19.

[857]"Lito regis liceat uxorem emere, ubicunqui voluerit. Sed non liceat ullam foeminam vendere."—Lex saxonum, tit. 18:Walter,Corpus juris germ., I, 389. Tit. 6 fixes the price at 300 solidi:Walter, I, 386.

[858]Lex wisigoth., lib. iii, tit. i, 2:Walter,Corpus juris germ., I, 466;Ludlow, inDict. Christ. Ant., I, 203. The bride-money is here calledpretium, elsewhere the betrothal is styledmercatio:Brunner,Rechtsgeschichte, I, 74 n. 23. The whole of liber iii,Walter, I, 465-91, relates to marriage and allied matters.

[859]Lex burgundionum, tits. 12, 34, 51, 52, 66, 69:Walter, I, 311, 320, 329, 330, 335, 336; for the Lombards,Edictum Rotharis, c. 178 ff.:Walter, I, 710 ff., especially c. 182, which contains the form of betrothal. Compare this with the later ritual given byCanciani, II, 476, summarized byWeinhold, I, 341;Ludlow, inDict. Christ. Ant., I, 203. See alsoLiutprandi leges, lib. ii, c. 7 ff., 88, 93, 99, 102, 106, 112, 115, 119, etc.:Walter, I, 759 ff.

[860]Lehmann,Verlobung und Hochzeit, 1 ff., 78, 79;Weinhold,Altdeutsches Leben, 240.Schroeder,Rechtsgeschichte, 287, denies that there are any sure traces of wife-purchase in northern law.

[861]Schroeder,op. cit., 292;Brunner,Rechtsgeschichte, 75;Weinhold,Deutsche Frauen, I, 321 ff.;Sohm,Eheschliessung, 23, 24, who thinks the fixing of a legal price of great importance, the purchase of a maid being thus distinguished from that of a thing. The bride-money is thus the nominal price of anunschätzbaresobject; it admits no bargaining; but the explanation ofHabicht,Altdeutsche Verlobung, 12, 13, given in the text, is simpler and more probable.Schroeder,Güterrecht, I, 11 ff., in connection with each code, gives a mass of details relative to the violation of themundby illegal marriage and the amount of the composition in each case.Cf.Laboulaye,Cond. des femmes, 113;Young, inEssays, 166; andÆthelberht, 31;Thorpe, I, 11, where thewergeldis mentioned.

[862]Latinarrha,arra, orarrhabo; Greek ἀρῥᾰβων; Lombardlaunichild,launegild, perhaps the same as the GermanLohngeld. It means "earnest money," and was used by the Romans in connection with bargains; also in general with other real contracts.Cf.Smith,Dict. Greek and Roman Ant., I, 193;Bingham,Orig. Ecc., VII, 311;Schroeder,Rechtsgeschichte, 290, 295;idem,Güterrecht, I, 39, 55 ff.;Heusler,Institutionen, I, 80 ff.;Sohm,Eheschliessung, 28;Zoepfl,Deutsche Rechtsgeschichte, III, 8 ff., 12-14;Davoud-Oghlou, II, 59 n. 3;Ludlow, inDict. Christ. Ant., I, 142-44. "Subarrare" is used in the ritual of the Greek church for disposing in marriage: see the ritual inBurn,Parish Registers, 141, 142.

[863]Sohm,Eheschliessung, 28-32, maintains this view againstSchroeder,Güterrecht, I, 39, 40, 55, and others, who regard thearrhaas a symbolical payment—aScheinpreisorsymbolischer Muntschatz.Cf.Friedberg,Eheschliessung, 19; "Zur Gesch. der Eheschliessung,"ZKR., I, 364 ff.

[864]Sohm,op. cit., 33.

[865]Ibid.

[866]Ibid., 34. ButFriedberg,Verlobung und Trauung, 8-10, insists on the long survival of the sale-contract.

[867]Ine, 31:Liebermann,Gesetze, 103. The phrase "and sio (seo) gyft (gift) forth ne cume" was rendered bySchroeder,Güterrecht, I, 51 n. 8, followed bySchmid,Gesetze, 34, 35, note, "if the purchase price be not paid"—a manifest error.Cf.Thorpe,Ancient Laws, I, 123.

[868]Ælfred, 18:Liebermann,Gesetze, 58-61.Cf.Thorpe,op. cit., I,73;Schmid,op. cit., 81, 83;Young, inEssays, 170.

[869]Ælfred,Ecc. Laws, 12:Thorpe,op. cit., I, 47. ButÆlfred,op. cit., 29, seems to show that the older practice of payment to the father also existed:Thorpe, I, 52.

[870]The Germanwetteand Anglo-Saxonwedare from the same root asbeweddung.

[871]Sohm,Eheschliessung, 30, 31, 317, note.

[872]Ibid., 34, 35;Schroeder,Rechtsgeschichte, 293, 294.

[873]On the oath andHandschlag, seeSohm,op. cit., 47-50; on hand-fasting,Friedberg,Eheschliessung, 39 ff.

[874]On the morning-gift and dower seeHeusler,Institutionen, II, 374-79;Thrupp,The Anglo-Saxon Home, 60;Gundling,De emptione uxorum, dote et morgengaba(Helmstedt, 1821);Gengler,Die Morgengaba(Bamberg, 1843);Eckhardt, "Das Witthum,"Zeitschrift für deutsches Recht, X, 437 ff.;Grupen,De uxore theotisca, 49-140;Brunner, "Die frankisch-romanische Dos,"Berliner Sitzungsber., XXIV, 545 ff.;Siegel,Deutsche Rechtsgeschichte, 455-57;Friedberg, "Zur Geschichte,"ZKR., I, 365, 366;Spirgatis,Verlobung und Vermählung, 14;Schroeder,Güterrecht, I, 84-94Zoepfl,Deutsche Rechtsgeschichte, III, 19-21.

[875]Schroeder,Güterrecht, I, 84-89.

[876]Ibid., 89-94.

[877]Glanville, Lib. VI, cap. 1;Phillips,Englische Reichs- und Rechtsgeschichte, II, 381. CompareSchroeder,op. cit., I, 89; II, 24-67,passim;Young, inEssays, 174;Laboulaye,Cond. des femmes, 117 ff., 124 ff.;Grimm,Rechtsalt., 441; and especially the monograph ofAshworth,Das Witthum (Dower) im eng. Recht, 9 ff., 18 ff.

[878]The meaning of "foster-laen" is uncertain.Schmidwrongly identifies it with thegyftofIne, 31, and thinks it is the purchase price of the bride, that is, theweotuma:Gesetze, 34, 35, note.Thorperegards it also as the purchase price paid to the family of the bride:Anc. Laws, I, 254, note.Schroeder,Güterrecht, I, 51 n. 13, believes it to be a provision for maintenance of the children. ButSohmrenders itWeinkauf, "drink-money," and this is probably right. It is a form or application of thearrha, which is not now paid down, but, the contract being formal, is promised to the guardian. Thearrhahad customarily been spent in treating the guests:Eheschliessung, 30, 31, 317, note.

[879]"The language of this law seems to indicate that thelegalendowment of the woman was one-third of the chattels, as inIne, c. 57. By contract, however, before marriage, the husband might increase this to one-half."—Thorpe, I, 255, note.

[880]Thebohrwas the surety for fulfilment of the pledges.

[881]Thorpe,Anc. Laws, I, 255, 257, who classes this formulary with the laws of Eadmund.Schmidleaves the date undetermined, but thinks it may with as much probability be ascribed to Eadmund or Æthelstan as any other king:Gesetze, lxv, findAnhang, VI, 391, 393.Cf.Pollock and Maitland,Hist. Eng. Law, II, 367; andDieckhoff,Kirchliche Trauung, 68 ff., who gives the text of this ritual.

[882]Sohm,Eheschliessung, 155, 100 n. 60, 317.Schroeder,Güterrecht, I, 53, 54, 96, reverses the meaning of these passages; and holds that the phrase "in case she choose his will" refers to theweotuma; and the phrase "if she live longer than he," to the morning-gift. But seePollock and Maitland, II, 363, who render the last clause by "dower," and the first by "morning-gift."

[883]Brunner,Rechtsgeschichte, I, 74.

[884]This is the view ofSohm,Trauung und Verlobung, 38-57;Eheschliessung, 89, 90, 100, 59 ff.; as opposed toFriedberg,Verlobung and Trauung, 21 ff.;Eheschliessung, 21, 22, who thinks that theTrauungandVerlobungusually coincided.Cf.Schroeder,Rechtsgeschichte, 293; andDieckhoff,Kirchliche Trauung, 67, who agrees with Sohm.

[885]For very interesting details relating to the GermanTrauungseeWeinhold,Deutsche Frauen, II, 362-413. The old English betrothal ceremonies are best described byRoeder,Die Familie bei den Angelsachsen, 15 ff.

[886]Haas, inWeber'sIndische Studien, V, 327-29, 391-99.Leist,Alt-arisches Jus Gentium, 133-71, gives a full discussion.Cf.above, chap. iv, pp. 171 ff.

[887]For the North Germans,Lehmann,Verlobung und Hochzeit, 80-88;Weinhold,Altnordisches Leben, 243-52; and in general,idem,Deutsche Frauen, 368 ff., 406 ff., 399. The third part of the ceremony is theBettbeschreitung, or bedding of the newly married pair. Normally this takes place in the bridegroom's house, as according to northern custom:Lehmann, 85-87; but sometimes it appears to have taken place in the bride's home before the home-bringing:Weinhold, I, 399 ff.Cf.Friedberg,Eheschliessung, 22, 45, 64.

[888]The nuptials of widows, according to Salic law, were an exception. These were, nominally, solemnized in themallum, or open court; but in practice this requirement may not always have been observed. The exception seems to be an outgrowth of the original restriction on second marriage:Tacitus,Germania, c. 19;Lex salica, 44,de reipus:Behrend, 57, 58.Cf.Sohm,Eheschliessung, 62-64 nn. 16, 17, 18;Schroeder,Güterrecht, I, 56.Friedberg,op. cit., 21; "Zur Geschichte,"ZKR., I, 366, led astray by the statement ofGrimm,Rechtsalt., 433, thatGemahl, "husband," is derived frommallum, thinks the nuptials were usually celebrated in open court. On the derivation seeSohm,op. cit., 62. In general on the marriage of widows see alsoHabicht,Altd. Verlobung, 16-23;Weinhold,Deutsche Frauen, II, 40 ff.;Schroeder,Rechtsgeschichte, 293, 296;Rive,Vormundschaft, I, 241;Zoepfl,Deutsche Rechtsgeschichte, III, 3, 10, 11;Weinhold, "Reipus und Achasius," inHaupt'sZeitschrift, VII, 539 ff.;Müllenhoff, "Glossary," inWaitz,Das alte Recht.

[889]Sohm,op. cit., 59-74.

[890]Grimm,op. cit., 142, 155, 156;Weinhold,Deutsche Frauen, I, 372. On thegiftacf.Schmid,Gesetze, 630;Friedberg,Eheschliessung, 21;Weinhold,Altnordisches Leben, 243 ff.

[891]Pollock and Maitland,Hist. of Eng.Law, II, 363. ThusFriedberg,op. cit., 21, 22, regards "Verlobung, Trauung, und Beilager" as acts each of which is an element in the "joining in marriage"—all three "eheschliessende Vorgänge."Cf.Sohm,Eheschliessung, 88, 89;Zoepfl,Deutsche Rechtsgeschichte, III, 5;Siegel,Deutsche Rechtsgeschichte, 455-57;Klein, DasEheverlöbniss, 130 ff., who reviews the whole subject, citing authorities; andHanauer,Coutumes matrimoniales, 255 ff.

[892]The views as to the legal "content" of the betrothal are summarized byHabicht,Altdeutsche Verlobung, 30.Rive,Vormundschaft, I, 243, holds that betrothal was not essential to a legal marriage; whilePardessus,Loi salique(Paris, 1843), regards it as legally requisite for a marriage, which, however, actually began only with the tradition of the bride.

[893]Sohm,Trauung und Verlobung, 139-47,passim;idem,Eheschliessung, 75-106.

[894]This is illustrated by the survival of names originally connected with the betrothal, but now with marriage itself: the Englishwed,wedding,wedded wife, etc.; the GermanGemahlandGemählin; the Frenchépouxandépouse, etc.Sohm,Eheschliessung, 78 n. 6, 56 nn. 74 and 75;idem,Trauung und Verlobung, 82, 83. ButHabicht,Altdeutsche Verlobung, 65-67, believes this argument not conclusive.

[895]Poen. Theod., XVI:Thorpe, II, 11: "reddatur ei pecunia quam pro ipsa dedit, et tertia pars addatur;" also inHaddan and Stubbs,Councils, III, 201; andWasserschleben,Bussordnungen, 216. The reading inConf. Ecgb.is, "reddatur ei pecunia, quam pro illa dederat, et praeteria tertia pars hereditatis."—Thorpe, II, 149;Wasserschleben, 309.Cf.Ælf., 18:Thorpe, I, 73;Young, inEssays, 169.

[896]Ine, 31:Thorpe, I, 123. CompareYoung,loc. cit., 168, 169.

[897]Sohm,Eheschliessung, 75-106;idem,Trauung und Verlobung, 1-37,passim;Young,loc. cit., 167-69.

[898]HisEheschliessung(1875) called forth theVerlobung und Trauung(1876) ofFriedberg; also a critique byMeyer, in theJenaer Lit. Ztg., Jan., 1876, 501 ff.Sohmdefends his position inTrauung und Verlobung(1876), 15 ff.; in hisZur Trauungsfrage, 11 ff.; and in theStrassburger Festgabe für Thöl, 84, 98 n. 27. The views of Sohm and others are examined byHabicht,Altdeutsche Verlobung(1879), who concludes (75) that "Die Verlobung ist nicht Beginn der Ehe, aber die rechtliche Grundlage und nothwendige Voraussetzung derselben." TheTrauungis "fulfilment of the betrothal" and "constitutes the beginning of the marriage."Lehmann,Verlobung und Hochzeit(1882), examines the problem from the standpoint of northern law, and reaches the analogous result (124, 125) that the "betrothal is a primary and independent, the nuptials (Hochzeit) a secondary and dependent, act for joining in marriage (Eheschliessungsact); the betrothal is the realEheschliessungsact, the nuptials anEhevollziehungsact." Sohm's view is adopted bySpirgatis,Verlobung und Vermählung, 4 f.; it is attacked byScheurl,Kirchliches Eheschliessungsrecht, 35 ff.; it is regarded as extreme (übertrieben), though in spirit right, bySchubert,Die evangelische Trauung, 15 n. 2;Loening,Gesch. d. deut. Kirchenrechts, II, 581, 600 n. 1; both betrothal and tradition are essential to a German marriage according toSehling,Unterscheidung der Verlöbnisse, 30; whileHeuslerholds that neither betrothal nor tradition, but thecopula carnalis, is the essential point:Institutionen, II, 284.Cf.Klein,Das Eheverlöbniss, 130-34;Schroeder,Rechtsgeschichte, 296, 297, and authorities there cited; andDieckhoff,Kirchliche Trauung, 66, 67, note, 97, who favors and summarizes Sohm's view.

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