Ancient Roman Marriage Flashcards
ideal marriage/ joys and benefits of marriage
Outline a Roman marriage
There were 2 types of roman marriage: cum manu and sine manu.
A roman marriage was little more than a private agreement between 2 families. A betrothal period would allow the families to get to know each other better.
Due to changes in political alliances it was not uncommon for men and women to marry multiple times over their lives.
explain what a cum manu marriage is
A cum manu marriage is a marriage with power.
This denotes a marriage where the woman goes under the patria potestas of her husband. The husband gains manus over his wife and has full responsibility of her, she cuts legal ties with her father’s family.
This marriage also comes with a dowry
Define manus
means ‘power’ this is the legal power weilded by a husband over a wife .
(the word literally means ‘hand’)
Explain what a sine manu marriage is
A sine manu marriage is a marriage without power.
This denotes a marriage where the hisband does not gain manus over his wife and she remains under patria potestas. She stays part of her father’s family so can inherit his estate and her husband has no legal power over her. This method also made divorce easier for women.
Which type of roman marriage is generally seen as more desirable
This is usually down to circumstances BUT generally sine manu is seen as more desirable as the woman could still inherit on her father’s death and could keep and aquire her own property. Additionally this method made divorce easier.
Outline the conditions of a roman marriage
- Both the man and the woman required the permission of their fathers. Despite this power (of the fathers) though there was also the necessity for the bride and groom to be willing to marry.
- there was a betrothal period
- Romans were not allowed to marry before puberty
When did Romans get married
Betrothals happened earlier but a roman woman would probably marry in her mid - late teens, certianly no earlier than 12 (which was the legal lower limit).
A roman man would probably marry in his late teens or early 20s, although he was allowed to marry at 14.
In both cases Romans were not allowed to marry before puberty.
Explain what a betrothal was in ancient rome and why it was used
For the upper classes, marriage was little more than a private agreement between 2 families. A betrothal period would allow the families to get to know each other better, although it could be broken off at any time with no repercussions.
Define dowry
A financial arrangement made between the families of the bride and groom.
What was the purpose of a roman marriage
There were 2 purposes of a Roman marriage:
1. for the production of legitimate children as heirs
2. for political alliance
Why was divorce relatively easy in ancient rome
Marriages were relatively easy to institute, and so was divorce.
Marriage was little more than intent of the couple to live together as husband and wife, so divorce was the lack of intent by one of the parties.
How common was divorce in ancient Rome and why
Due to changes in political allegiances, it was not uncommon for men and women to marry multiple times over the course of their lives.
why was getting remarried in ancient rome so common
There were social, familial, political and legal benefits to being married.
The legal benefits were introduced by Augustus in his Julian laws in 18 BCE which set specific rules to encourage marriage and childbirth. One gave specific benefits for couples with at least 3 children.
However it wasnt just rewards, one law stated that unmarried men and women were unable to accept legacies from wills.
Augustus led by example, Livia was his 3rd wife and he her 2nd husband. It was however expected that a woman would wait a period of time before remarriage to avoid potential issues of paternity of children.
What was the role of the lex Juliae for ancient roman marriages
It promotes legitimate children
discourages adultery
discourages single life
Give to examples of ideal marriages from ancient rome
- Augustus and Livia
- Aeneas and Creusa
