On 12 Mar 2011, at 08:57, Lis Palmer wrote: > On 12/03/2011 10:02, Anne Peat wrote: >> The gaps from 1646-1660 were, of course, because this was during the Commonwealth period under Oliver Cromwell, when marriages were no longer the business of the church, but took place before JP. >> Early civil registration :-)) >> >> > Are these early civil marriages recorded and are they available for us > to search? > I need a marriage about 1657. > Lis > I'm not sure many of them survive, Lis. A Google search came up with a document on Marriage Registration > http://www.chessvalley-u3a.org.uk/fam%20hist/Handouts/PARISH%20REGISTERS%20-%20PRESENTATION%20NOTES.doc with this information: > During the period known as the Commonwealth 1649-53, records were poor and during Oliver Cromwell’s Protectorate officers, called ‘Parish Registers’, were appointed to record events in Civil Registers. Marriages were to take place before a Justice of the Peace and it actually became illegal to marry in church. > > After Charles II was restored to the throne in 1660, these marriages were legalised in retrospect although some clergy refused to accept this and forced a second marriage in church or simply branded the children illegitimate. > > The ‘Parish Registers’ were dismissed and some clergy confiscated the Civil Registers and destroyed them. This is known as the Commonwealth gap to family history researchers. You would have to enquire in the Record office for the area you are interested in, to see if any of the Commonwealth registers escaped destruction, or whether any marriages were entered retrospectively. Apparently children of 'commonwealth marriages' were often baptised as 'alias' (surname) to imply they were considered by the clergy to be illegitimate, since their parents didn't marry in church. HTH Anne