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Life

20th Oct 2018

This is why the groom traditionally doesn’t see the bride before the wedding

This certainly takes the romance out of it...

Cathy Donohue

How one Meath community rallied to help a couple get married in the snow

Romance is dead.

At least, that’s how we feel after hearing that the tradition of a groom and bride not seeing each other the night before the wedding has nothing to do with love.

No, it dates back to a time when marriages were arranged and the ‘agreement’ was made by the bride’s father.

Sadly, Daddy dearest (in some cases, not all) was so eager to marry his daughter off that he didn’t want her husband-to-be to see her before the big day… in case he changed his mind.

Wow.

According to Brides, if this happened and the arrangement was cancelled, it brought shame on the family because of course, no one spared a thought for how this might feel for the poor woman who had her fate decided for her.

Today, it has evolved into a romantic tradition where the couple stay with their respective bridal parties, bridesmaids and groomsmen, before the big day so as to build up the anticipation for the momentous occasion.

Sadly, the tradition didn’t originally have such a touching meaning!