
Mixed Marriage
Class, Religion, Race, and Nation in England, 1837-1939
Ginger S. Frost(Author)
Liverpool University Press
Published on 2. February 2024
Book
Hardback
288 pages
978-1-80207-363-8 (ISBN)
Description
Ebook available to libraries exclusively as part of the JSTOR Path to Open initiative.
This book is a study of the social and legal consequences of mixed marriage in England by class, religion, race, and nationality between 1837 and 1939. Using a wide variety of sources, such as government documents, marital litigation, poor-law records, and autobiographies, it explores the reaction of the family, neighbourhood, and state to those who chose exogamous matches.
The major factor in these marriages was gender. Wives did the emotional work to overcome divisions, and they also had more legal problems than husbands over property, divorce, and custody of children. Wives who would not or could not adjust to differences exposed the gendered power relations normally hidden in the fiction of separate spheres. Such spouses included wives who had more property than their husbands, those who refused to convert to their husbands' religions, and those who could not adapt to a foreign country
Timing was also crucial. Class and religion were bigger factors in the nineteenth century, while race and nationality were more prominent in the twentieth. During economic downturns or war, mixed families could face hostility, but this was not invariable. In poor neighbourhoods, especially, acceptance was the norm, with blending of religions, races, and nations common. Overall, England had a long history of welcoming immigrants that blunted some of the prejudices also common to this age.
This book is a study of the social and legal consequences of mixed marriage in England by class, religion, race, and nationality between 1837 and 1939. Using a wide variety of sources, such as government documents, marital litigation, poor-law records, and autobiographies, it explores the reaction of the family, neighbourhood, and state to those who chose exogamous matches.
The major factor in these marriages was gender. Wives did the emotional work to overcome divisions, and they also had more legal problems than husbands over property, divorce, and custody of children. Wives who would not or could not adjust to differences exposed the gendered power relations normally hidden in the fiction of separate spheres. Such spouses included wives who had more property than their husbands, those who refused to convert to their husbands' religions, and those who could not adapt to a foreign country
Timing was also crucial. Class and religion were bigger factors in the nineteenth century, while race and nationality were more prominent in the twentieth. During economic downturns or war, mixed families could face hostility, but this was not invariable. In poor neighbourhoods, especially, acceptance was the norm, with blending of religions, races, and nations common. Overall, England had a long history of welcoming immigrants that blunted some of the prejudices also common to this age.
More details
Language
English
Place of publication
Liverpool
United Kingdom
Target group
Professional and scholarly
Dimensions
Height: 239 mm
Width: 163 mm
ISBN-13
978-1-80207-363-8 (9781802073638)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Person
Ginger S. Frost is University Research Professor of History at Samford University.
Content
Acknowledgments
Introduction
Chapter One: Marrying Up and Marrying Down
Chapter Two: "Fatal" to "Domestic Happiness"? Religiously Mixed Marriages
Chapter Three: Conversion and Controversy: Christians, Jews, and Muslims
Chapter Four: "Something out of the Common": Interracial Marriage in Britain
Chapter Five: "Not Always Logical": Race, Empire, and Transnational Families
Chapter Six: : "Laws Cannot Change the Heart": Transnational Marriage in Peace and War
Chapter Seven: : "Have I Not the Right to Justice?": Gender in International Marriage and Divorce
Conclusion
Bibliography
Index
Introduction
Chapter One: Marrying Up and Marrying Down
Chapter Two: "Fatal" to "Domestic Happiness"? Religiously Mixed Marriages
Chapter Three: Conversion and Controversy: Christians, Jews, and Muslims
Chapter Four: "Something out of the Common": Interracial Marriage in Britain
Chapter Five: "Not Always Logical": Race, Empire, and Transnational Families
Chapter Six: : "Laws Cannot Change the Heart": Transnational Marriage in Peace and War
Chapter Seven: : "Have I Not the Right to Justice?": Gender in International Marriage and Divorce
Conclusion
Bibliography
Index