Mourning period

[andrew14466]

My ancestor married for a second time in England in 1840. I have a copy of the marriage certificate.

In November 1839, she is mentioned in a newspaper article as being dressed in black. I suspect she ma have been mourning the death of her first husband. I suspect he died in 1839 but cannot find his death certificate in 1839 or 1838 or 1837.

I wondered how long a widow would mourn at that time? Thanks

[Trishanne]

In the 1840s mourning wasn't as strict as later after Prince Albert died in the 1860s. A widow would wear mourning for at least a year, could be two years. They would then go into half mourning for a further period, when they would wear more purple, mauve or white on their outfits.  It sounds  as if your ancestor was still in deep mourning clothes. It was quite common in those days though for a widow to marry after just six months if she needed somebody to provide for her or if there were children who need looking after.

[philipsearching]

Your ancestor might not have been wearing mourning clothes in November 1839 for her husband - maybe for another relative.

If you let us know the name of your ancestor (both maiden name and married name), the forename of her first husband (if known), and the area where she lived, we can help in the search for her first husband's death.

Philip

[Maiden Stone]

Some information about pre-Victorian mourning.
"Mourning Customs in Regency England"
https://donnahatch.com/mourning-customs-in regency-england/
Earlier still. "Mourning in the Georgian Era"
https://www.geriwalton.com/mourning-in-georgian-era/
I read somewhere that a reason for a widow to wait a year before remarrying was to avoid doubt about paternity of the first child of a second marriage.
Widowers weren't expected to wait as long, especially if they had young children. 

[ThrelfallYorky]

It's true, financial needs often made widows seek if possible to re-marry. That could cause some confusion if both partners had children on close ages, I spent ages disentangling two males with exactly the same name and apparent age in censuses after their parents'  marriage brought two families into one!
Several smallish children, death of the provider father,  and no capital or helpful family could be a swift route to the workhouse in the 19th Century for many women and their families, unless they could re-marry.
TY

[louisa maud]

Maiden Stone
I found  a relative of my husband marrying in the same  qtr as her deceased husband' death,  about 1918 and he hadn't died because of the war , to late to find out why, well we can all draw our own conclusions

LM

[BumbleB]

But we have to realise that in the past there was no social security - if your husband died, then you could be destitute.

I have an instance - not my family - where husband died 14 March 1921, and widow re-married 16 April 1921.