History Behind Arranged Marriages

Arranged marriages started a long time ago in Northern Africa and Central Europe but are no longer common in Europe, and were common as far back as biblical times and beyond. The basic rules of arranged marriages have not changed as much as before in the past years. However the practices and ceremonies were more strict and more serious back in the day. Back in the day the main reasons for arranged marriages were not for the husband and wife to find true love through family or friends connections, For example in ancient Egypt a chief arranged a marriage so that he could keep his royal bloodlines pure, and free of any illnesses. The chief of Egypt didn't want any of his relatives to die because of the disease hemophilia which was called "the royal disease". The Romans also participated in arranged marriages. The Romans daughters also known as royal princesses were used as currency so that it could strengthen the military position of families. The marriages were arranged when the royal princesses were babies. The royal princesses were told to stay with their families until they reached the age of 16-20, then they were shipped off the their husbands. An example of this arranged marriage is the arranged marriage of Marie Antoinette the daughter of Queen Maria Theresa of Austria-Hungary. She was promised to the prince of France at a very young age. Royal Princesses were were married to older men who lived far away on different land. Most of the time the young brides were sent away to live in a foreign land with a man they have never seen before.