Date: [unknown] to 25 Mar 1754
Location: England, and London, England

An explanation of Clandestine Marriages in London (Fleet Marriages), notes discussing the veracity of dates in Parish Registers as affected by the change from Julian to Gregorian calendar in 1752.

Clandestine Marriages

‘’’Clandestine Marriages’’’ Marriages by a form of ceremony conducted by an ordained clergyman, but without banns or licence, and generally not in a church or chapel, usually away from the parish of the bride or groom were termed clandestine marriages. The main appeal of clandestine marriages was seemingly for reasons of cost. Other reasons for their popularity included the avoidance of the need to obtain parental consent, and also to conceal embarrassing pregnancies.
Clandestine marriages began to grow in numbers from the middle of the seventeenth century. The authorities attempted to quell this growth by introducing three parliamentary acts between 1694 and 1696. These acts inadvertently gave a near monopoly to private marriage centres outside a bishop's visitation (e.g. prisons) and to clergymen (many of whom were prisoners) who had nothing to lose by conducting clandestine, fee-paying marriages.
In 1711, Parliament passed legislation which included an attempt to deal with the problem of such clandestine marriages being conducted in prisons,. While this prevented the marriages being performed inside the prisons, which did not prevent them being conducted in other locations in the vicinity of the prisons: e.g. the Liberties (or Rules) of the Fleet, or the Mint (for King's Bench Prison). On 25 March 1754, all clandestine marriages were made illegal by Lord Hardwicke's Marriage Act.
The marriages performed at the Fleet involved all classes from London and the surrounding counties, but mainly catered for artisans, farmers, labourers and craftsmen from the poorer parishes of London, soldiers (including Chelsea Pensioners), and particularly sailors. King's Bench Prison was located on the east side of Borough High Street in Southwark. Relatively few marriages were performed in the Prison itself, and by the 1740s, those marriages which had been performed in the Mint began to be held at the Fleet. The King's Bench and the Mint, because of their location, tended to attract a high proportion of couples from Kent and Surrey.
From the late 1720s, clandestine marriages commenced at May Fair, which eventually became only second to the Fleet in terms of notoriety for such marriages. Initially, May Fair marriages were performed at St George's Chapel, Curzon Street, Mayfair. Whereas clandestine marriages performed at the Fleet and King's Bench prisons and surrounding areas tended to attract the working classes, the May Fair Chapel was used by professional classes and the aristocracy.
. The need for a public record of the marriages meant that they were recorded in registers and some were produced as evidence in court cases,^[1]

The change from Julian to Gregorian calendar

Research Note: This source does not include an image of the Parish register page. As New Year's Day fell on 25th March prior to 1752, we do not know whether the baptism and its preceding birth occurred in 1nnn in the convention of the day, which would put it in 1nnn in today's convention.

Research Note: As New Year's Day fell on 25th March prior to 1752, this record date is not affected by the change from Julian to Gregorian calendar

Research Note: Examination of the original transcript indicates that this source has been corrected to the modern calendar from the original entry in 1nnn.

Research Note: The following record was altered in the register to ascribe dates between January and March 25th from 1nnn to 1nnn To reflect the change from Julian to Gregorian calendar.

Research Note: Examination of the original transcript indicates that this source has not been corrected to the modern calendar from the original entry in 1nnn, so the birth year will be 1nnn.

Sources

1. ↑ https://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/C13332