The CofE requirement came in with Hardwicke's Marriage Act in the 1750s and lasted until the advent of Civil Marriages in 1837. There were exceptions for Quakers and Jews whose records and requirements were up to scratch and didn't need further regulation. Hardwicke's Marriage Act also created the spur for couples to elope to Scotland and marry under Scottish Law at places just over the border such as Gretna Green. David Armstrong Maylands, Western Australia ----- Original Message ----- From: Connie To: MAVIS JOHNSON ; leicestershire-plus@rootsweb.com Sent: Saturday, August 24, 2013 7:57 PM Subject: Re: [LEI] [NTT] Who do you think you are? On 22/08/2013 18:24, MAVIS JOHNSON wrote: > I cannot see a marriage in the Notts FHS Index but as most of these Laceworkers were Non Conformists it may be that they married in a Chapel, or even in another County. There was a period when a non conformist marriage had to take place in the CoE for it to be recognised and legal. I'm not sure when that changed. The marriage you are interested should be in the GRO index. All marriages after the start of civil registration irrespective of what religion or where they took place are supposed to be in the index. -- Connie