Acquaintance
Usually the bride and groom met at a ball. In the first half of the 19th century, the trendsetter of balls in Moscow was Maria Ivanovna Rimskaya-Korsakova. She organized evenings almost every day - every self-respecting nobleman attended them, even Pushkin visited her. So Rimskaya-Korsakova tried to find a suitable match for her daughters.
And, of course, girls had to dress fashionably (in order to get married more successfully). White dresses were popular at balls. Gloves, mostly long, were a mandatory accessory - it was considered indecent to offer a hand without gloves. It was impossible to talk with young people, so the girls communicated with the help of a fan. A fully open fan meant that the girl was delighted with the boy, a closed one meant that she was indifferent to him. In addition, the girl could leave a scarf for the gentleman as a souvenir, “accidentally” throwing it away.
Is the system good?
Dating allows you to assess the reliability of your partner. People understand how they can get along. In the 18th and 19th centuries this would have been especially important, because divorce was condemned by the church. What to do? The girls listened to reviews about a potential companion, tried to discreetly look at him when going out into society. A girl of marriageable age was herself the object of attention, while personal characteristics and achievements did not play a role.
Showcases of girls were organized at balls and fairs. There were simple fairs in the capital - unmarried people from all over the country came here, and Moscow girls were looking for a spouse here. Balls were organized to find spouses for noble ladies and foreigners. Strict etiquette determined what kind of acquaintance was possible: the girl had with her a book in which she entered the names of her dance partners. It was considered important how many dances were performed and with whom exactly they were danced. You couldn't accept the same man's invitation twice. Such behavior was considered indecent; after this, any honest man was obliged to invite his partner to become his wife.
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Matchmaking
After meeting, the groom came to the bride’s house with gifts to get married. Usually it was a box with jewelry - gold bracelets, earrings, hat pins. The groom tried in every possible way to show his affection and status.
Bracelet: Russia. Last quarter of the 19th century – beginning of the 20th century, gold, quartz, chrysoprase; carving (State Historical Museum) Ring: Western Europe, Russia, Moscow. Early 20th century, gold, emeralds, diamonds, cut diamonds (State Historical Museum) Earrings: Russia. Early 20th century, Gold, diamonds, pearls (State Historical Museum)
Another important part of preparing for a wedding is the blessing of the parents.
. Guests were invited to this event: friends and relatives. Usually the blessing was performed with an icon of the Savior, the Kazan Mother of God, or another image especially revered in the family - it was believed that the marriage would be happy and the offspring healthy.
“Now parents more often learn about the decision to get married as a fact,” says Olga.
Wedding hairstyles and makeup in 19th century style
All 19th century ladies had simple, modest, yet elegant hairstyles. Just listen to the names of these hairstyles - “butterfly”, “sentimental”, “mystery”, “sissy”. Particularly sophisticated ladies used almost everything they could find in their hairstyles - ribbons, jewelry, fabrics, flowers, fruits. Headgear has always been a variety of hats with feathers.
Makeup in the style of the 19th century emphasizes the woman’s red cheeks and scarlet lips. In all other respects, the image should be completely natural.
Men of the 19th century loved to wear white wigs - large curls laid in parallel rows.
Dowry
On the day of the engagement, a document “Dowry Listing” was drawn up, in which they described what the bride had - images, fur coats, bonnets, chests, jewelry. The dowry was prepared in advance and sent to the groom's house in several carriages.
This is interesting!
Elizaveta Ivanovna Benardaki, from a family of the first millionaires in Russia who started in Taganrog, helped some brides with dowries so that they would get married successfully.
Historians write that she bequeathed “to deposit 10 thousand rubles
so that interest on this capital would be given once a year to five poor brides in the city of Taganrog, mainly from the Greeks.”
Russia. 1885, April. Dowry painting
Matchmaking did not always go smoothly - the parents might not like the groom or his status. There were cases when the wedding almost took place, but at the last minute it became known that the groom was a relative of the bride or was already married.
“...she didn’t like the first one herself, the second one was not in rank and the mother didn’t like it, the third one was liked by both of them very much, the betrothal had already been made, and the wedding day had been set, but the day before, to their surprise, they learned that he was their in close relatives, everything was upset...”
Vladimir Odoevsky, story “Princess Mimi”
How did it all happen?
In the 18th and 19th centuries, young girls had much less opportunities to find an ideal match - nothing to compare with our days. They had no dates, no theaters, no long walks in the park with potential objects of attention. Often even talking was frowned upon. However, there was courtship and falling in love, and prohibitions exist to be broken.
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What is considered a date in our world was simply absent in Russia in those centuries; girls usually became wives by agreement of relatives. Sometimes they got to see their spouse several times before the wedding. Marriages were concluded by parents, in some cases by those in power: the monarch could demand that his favorite marry this or that lady. Did they like each other or not? It didn't matter.
Wedding preparations
hen-party
In the 19th century, stag and hen parties were also held. Writer Maria Kamenskaya recalls that on the eve of the bachelorette party, the girls went to the bathhouse with the bride, and then sang wedding songs, drank, ate and danced. The bachelor party was more discreet
– the groom gathered his friends, and they had decorous conversations. Among the peasants, the bachelorette party was held differently: the girl was mourned, symbolizing her transition to a new status as a married woman.
Engraving "Dressing the Bride", Western Europe. Late 19th century
From the collection of G.V. Novikova
Dress
Until the 19th century, people in Europe got married in multi-colored dresses - red, green or blue. In Russia, the most elegant dress, fashionable among the nobility, was chosen for this purpose. But in 1840, Queen Victoria of England was getting ready to get married and suddenly decided to choose a white dress for the ceremony and decorate it with a veil and lace, thereby introducing this outfit into wedding fashion.
Portrait of Queen Victoria in her wedding dress
Dresses were ordered from Western Europe. Royal figures set the fashion, and the nobility, merchants and peasantry followed.
Wedding dress, Western Europe. 1914
There was no mass production back then, so everything was made to order. One of the dresses that can be seen at the exhibition was made in 1914 in New York, the shoes are made of a similar material. By the way, stockings were also sewn for this dress, and they were stored in special envelopes made of the same material.
Shoes to match the dress, New York. 1914 (From the collection of G.V. Novikova)
Appearance is important
In the 18th and 19th centuries, clothing determined membership in a particular social class, so the appearance at the brides' fair was extremely significant for a girl. They dressed her so that those around her would consider the person beautiful and worthy, with impeccable manners. The outfit demonstrated the wealth of the family, showed that the young lady was well brought up and possessed all the important skills. Inappropriate clothing was a big problem, and fashionistas were considered spendthrifts. Not fitting into the accepted framework, the lady dropped out of society. The outfit showed both the wealth and taste of the girl. At balls, they revealed their backs, shoulders, and chest. They preferred dresses in light shades. Young ladies were given sky blue, white, and pinkish dresses, and older women were given lilac, blue, and emerald dresses. The girls were decorated with light aesthetic details, focusing on youth. There was no fashion for makeup.
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Veil
This is interesting!
The tradition of wrapping the bride in a thick blanket appeared in Ancient Greece and Rome. It was believed that the veil would protect the bride from the unkind glances of envious people, the evil eye and damage. Later the veil was transformed into a long veil. It was believed that the future spouse could see the face of the chosen one only after the wedding, and the bride’s face was covered with a veil so that the groom would not change his mind after seeing the appearance of his future wife.
Cape, Belgium. XVIII century
In addition to the veil, there were other wedding accessories in the 19th century. One of them is a mother-of-pearl fan with galloping horsemen carved on it. A similar one is in the Hermitage collection - it was made for the wedding of Grand Duchess Maria Alexandrovna with the Duke of Edinburgh, which took place in 1874 in St. Petersburg. At the exhibition in Kolomenskoye, an almost identical fan is presented, only it depicts one dove instead of two. Perhaps the accessory was made for the wedding of someone from the royal family.
Plie` wedding fan “Bouquets of roses”. France. 1870s
Lace
In England there is a sign that on her wedding day the bride should wear “Something old and something new, something borrowed and something blue.” .
Something old is lace that was passed down from grandmothers. They were very expensive - some were more expensive than gold. The wedding dress of American actress Grace Kelly (she got married in 1956) was decorated with lace that was more than 100 years old. Lace is well preserved, so you can often find whole lace from unpreserved dresses in antique shops.
New is jewelry given by the groom. Queen Victoria, seven years after the wedding, commissioned a portrait in which she was depicted in a wedding dress and a brooch, which her husband gave her.
As for borrowing, it was considered a good omen to borrow something from a friend, and something blue was a tribute to the old fashion, when dresses of this color were popular. It was believed that blue was a heavenly color, the color of the Virgin Mary, and it was sure to bring happiness.
The lace was woven using special devices - bobbins.
. The portrait of “The Lacemaker” by Tropinin depicts French bobbins, since, most likely, the lacemaker worked for the nobles. Of the Russian laces, we know only those from Vologda, although there were many lace-making centers. Even if our lacemakers made thin, beautiful lace, it was still put in a French box and passed off as foreign - it was believed that it was better than Russian.
Tropinin A.V. "The Lacemaker"
Wedding
The main pre-wedding moment of the 19th century is the wedding, that is, the union of two loving hearts with a heavenly blessing. On the wedding day, the groom, through a matchmaker or aunt, sent the bride a “groom’s box” with gifts and wedding accessories - a veil, wedding rings, wedding candles, perfume, pins. Having received the gift, the bride's aunt began to dress the young woman for the wedding.
Before getting married, they compiled a “Marriage Search”
. They collected evidence that confirmed that the bride and groom were not related, were married, and were “of good mind and sober memory.” Weddings that took place on Pokrov were considered the happiest.
Wedding decorations. Russian empire. Early 20th century
Wedding program in 19th century style
- Ransom in a duel
- Launching pigeons,
- Walk (photo and video shooting),
- Buffet for guests during the Young People's walk,
- Dress-code themed costumes,
- The invitation is a mystery
- The host greets the newlyweds and guests in the banquet hall,
- The hall is decorated in 19th century style,
- Live music,
- Animators - characters of the 19th century,
- The first white dance of the Young,
- Dance show,
- On-site photo studio at the “Wedding in the style of the 19th century” stand,
- Soap Show,
- Illusionist,
- costume show,
- Hookahs,
- Fire Show,
- Thematic competitions,
- Exquisite delicious cake,
- Disco,
- Fireworks.
On-site marriage registration,
