Brewer's: Penny Weddings

Wedding banquets in Scotland, to which a number of persons were invited, each of whom paid a small sum of money not exceeding a shilling. After defraying the expenses of the feast, the residue went to the newly-married pair, to aid in furnishing their house. Abolished in 1645.

“Vera true, vera true. We'll have a' to pay ... a sort of penny-wedding it will prove, where all men contribute to the young folks' maintenance.” —SirWalterScott: Fortunes of Nigel, chap. xxvii.

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