Bridesmaids Dresses
Bridesmaids Dresses - The East Midlands best from Glamorous Gowns...
Got the perfect Wedding Dress? We've got the Perfect Bridesmaids Dresses to complement it.
So what is a Bridesmaid?
A Bridesmaid is a girl or young woman who attends to the bride during or after a wedding or marriage ceremony. Traditionally bridesmaids were chosen from unwed young women of marriageable age.
In early Roman times, bridesmaids formed a kind of bridal infantry as they accompanied the bride to the groom's village. This "protective shield" of similarly outfitted bridesmaids was supposed to intervene if any wayward thugs or vengeful suitors tried to hurt the bride or steal her dowry.
However, the Western bridesmaid tradition seems to have originated from later Roman law, which required ten witnesses at a wedding in order to outsmart evil spirits believed to attend marriage ceremonies. The bridesmaids and ushers dressed in identical clothing to the bride and groom, so that the evil spirits would not know who was getting married. Even as late as 19th century England, there was a belief that ill-wishers could administer curses and taint the wedding. In Victorian wedding photographs, for example, the bride and groom can look very similar to other members of the bridal party.
The principal bridesmaid is called the maid of honour (or matron of honour if she is married).
A bridesmaid is often a close friend or sister. Often there is more than one bridesmaid: in modern times the bride chooses how many to have. Historically, no person of status went out unattended, and the size of the retinue was closely calculated to be appropriate to the status of the personage.
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