What were English 'rules restricting marriage'?

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England notably had a late age of first marriage due to socially enforced cultural rules around appropriate economic capacity to maintain a household. This “late age of first marriage” household reproduction strategy was common to north Europe and the pet**s bourgeois. England was in north Europe. England had a wealthier peasantry prior to 1750 than many other locations and additionally had a large pet**s bourgeois.

While not unlawful, early marriage was economically costly, invited social censure, and could result in lack of access to productive property or disinheriting.

The core “rule” was that men needed to restrict marriage until capable of independently maintaining a household of their class at the social standard expected by their class. Women’s first marriage was much less restricted as women did not generally control social property at time of first marriage.

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