Did Spanish Nobility Marry into English peerage in the late Georgian era?

D

delouse

New member
Were woman of lower Spanish Nobility able to marry those of English peerage like a Earl or Baron?
If they were did they have to bring wealth to the table in order for the marriage to be accpeted?

May there be any books I may be able to read on this matter as well?

Thank you for any help on this!
 
I wouldn't think it would be a very usual occurence. The British nobility mostly married members of other British noble families. Apart from anything else, most Spaniards were Catholics, and most British people at this time were Protestants and very anti-catholic.

However, I suppose it is possible that a British nobleman travelling in Spain for some reason might meet a Spanish noblewoman and fall in love with her. If he wanted to marry a Spanish woman whether his family had any say in the matter would depend on his age, whether he held a title in his own right etc. If, say, he was an Earl or a Baron, nobody could stop him marrying whoever he liked. if he was only the son of a nobleman then his father would expect to have some say in whom his son married, and could make difficulties if he didn't approve of the match.

There would also be the Spanish noblewoman's family to consider. Young unmarried Spanish women of good family were normally chaperoned, and would not be allowed to meet anyone their family considered unsuitable. Whether a Spanish nobleman would want his daughter marrying an heretical englishman is doubtful.
 
We would marry anyone if the dowwry were right.

Also, Spain was allied to Great Britain in the Napoleonic Wars. If you would like to plunder material of a parallel nature for a novel, find the autobiography of Sir Harry Smith. His wife Lady Smith -whose name was given to a town in South Africa- was Spanish and he met her during the Peninsular Campaign and -in effect- she became part of his regiment.

Sir Harry Smith burned down the White House, having first eaten President Madison's dinner which was on the table, as well as drinking his wine cellar. He also fought at the Battle of New Orleans.

He writes very well. There are lots of specific details and he has very human reactions to things, as well as being very sanguine about having operations performed upon himself, without anaesthetics, such as removing musket balls from parts of his body.
 
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