Hi Jackie, Are you sure that he wasn't a non-conformist ? In the second half of the 18th century, there was a lot of it about in Leicestershire. If you would like to post details of the name and place, there's a chance someone may recognise the family, or at least be able to say whether there were non-conformist churches in the area. Best wishes, Mike Gould -----Original Message----- From: leicestershire-plus-bounces@rootsweb.com [mailto:leicestershire-plus-bounces@rootsweb.com] On Behalf Of Jackie Evans Sent: 01 December 2007 22:27 To: LEICESTERSHIRE-PLUS@rootsweb.com Subject: [LEI] Marriage licences Hello Everybody In the 18C how much more expensive was it to be married by licence than by banns? Or was it not more expensive? I've assumed that licences were preferred by (a) the well to do (who didn't want the common herd to know of their business) or (b) non-conformists (who wouldn't normally attend church) or (c) where expediency was required (eg an imminent confinement). Why would an illiterate husbandman (a smallholder I believe) who doesn't fall into any of the above categories choose to be married by licence? Regards Jackie (South Wales)