Introduction

These notes are prepared in order to help with the interpretation and understanding of the transcription of the St. John’s (Anglican) Church Register of Marriages, 1824 to 1851.

St John’s Church, Buenos Aires

The Anglican congregation in Argentina was founded in Buenos Aires with the arrival of the Rev. John Armstrong as its first chaplain in 1825. Initially, the congregation worshipped in a rented building, shared with the Scots Presbyterians, known as the British Protestant Chapel, until St John’s Church was completed and consecrated in March 1831. In later years it became the Cathedral Church of the Anglican Diocese of Argentina.

The Marriage Registers

The marriage registers contain a record of the marriages conducted by the Anglican chaplains over the years (with the exception of the first five entries). They constitute a permanent legal record of each marriage, a certified copy of which would serve, at any later moment, as proper evidence of that marriage.

The reason for the marriage ceremony

A formal marriage ceremony was held to mark the beginning of a man and a woman’s life together. In obedience to Judeo-Christian tradition, they did not live together or have an intimate relationship until married.

The marriage ceremony brought together two essential elements, the legal and the religious.

Legal considerations

According to Judeo-Christian law, a man may only have one wife, and a wife only one husband. Once married, a man and wife were not able to divorce, since this possibility was not then recognised in law. The only grounds for entering into a second marriage lay in the circumstances that followed after a spouse had died; the surviving partner was then free to marry again.

Thus, a constant element in the marriage records under consideration was the requirement that, before the marriage ceremony, the parties to the intending marriage should declare under oath before an appropriate authority that they were either unmarried (a bachelor or spinster), or a widower or widow.

A person’s coming of age, that point in time when legally he or she was regarded as an independent adult, was during this period fixed at their 21^st birthday. Therefore it was not possible to be married under the age of 21, unless the person’s parents or legal guardian had given their permission. This is reflected in those records contained in the marriage register in which the phrase "the consent of the Father [Mother, Guardian] of the other" is used. I suggest that, almost without exception, it was the woman who was under the legal age for marriage. In almost all these cases, the father or mother of the bride also among those who signed the register as a witness to the marriage. In two marriages (Nos. 159 and 161) the phrase "the consent of friends of the latter" indicates that the bride’s parents’ permission was unobtainable (for whatever reason), and her friends stood as surety for her.

During the period covered by this first marriage register, the ‘appropriate authority’ before whom the couple would make their declaration on oath, was the British Consul General, or his legally acknowledged replacement. At almost all the marriages between 1826 and the end of 1831, the Consul General, or his substitute, was present at the marriage ceremony, and was the first witness to add his signature after the couple had signed the register.

However, during this period up to February 1832, there were 16 marriages conducted by the Rev. John Armstrong, for which there were no apparent legal antecedents. On analysis, we find that one or both of the parties did not hold British nationality. It can be provisionally concluded that these couples wanted to be married by a Protestant clergyman, although, in the case of ten of these 16 weddings neither party held British nationality. It seems that the services of the Anglican clergyman were being called upon by the North American Protestant and the Lutheran communities in the absence of a pastor of their own.

The Religious Aspect

Apart from the first five marriages, which took place before the arrival of the Rev. John Armstrong, the first Anglican Chaplain, the wedding ceremonies in this register were all conducted by successive Anglican chaplains in Buenos Aires.

Mostly they were conducted in the provisional ‘British Protestant Chapel’, the building rented for services by the British community. From August 1829, it became known as the British Protestant Episcopal Chapel, thus marking the moment when the Scots Presbyterians had their own minister and place of worship. From March 1831, the newly built St John’s Church was brought into use. However, for a period of time between July 1829 and October 1831, some couples chose to be married in the British Legation. The most likely explanation is that these were members of the Scots Church.

Two marriages, No. 46 celebrated in July 1827 and No. 51 celebrated in April 1828, were described as ‘remarriages’. Is this evidence that the Anglican ceremony in each case had followed a Roman Catholic ceremony, the two parties belonging, one to one church and the other to the other?

The period from 1832

It appears that the legal regulations changed as from the beginning of 1832. It was no longer required that the Consul General should be present at the marriages. Instead, the stipulation was evidently made that couples intending to marry at the church first attended the British Consulate in order to declare on oath before the Consul that "both parties were of age & that no let or impediment existed". This form of wording first appears in marriage No. 97 of March 1832. It has to be presumed that a certificate of the oath thus taken was given to the couple for presentation to the clergyman before he would conduct the wedding ceremony.

The system also began to emerge that the Buenos Ayres Government began to issue licences for Protestants to marry. The first example is Nos. 104 of October 1832. Those who sought government licences were generally citizens of North America or the North European states. We also note that from 1848 to 1851, all the marriages that took place at St John’s Church took place after the issue of a licence by the Buenos Aires Government.

Two ‘Double’ Marriages

During this period, 1824 to 1851, two extraordinary marriages took place. The first was between Samuel Fisher Lafone and Maria Quevedo on 19^th June 1833 (No. 119); the second was between James Parris Fisher and Louisa Alsina on 5^th January 1839 (No. 163). Both ceremonies took place at St John’s Church following a Roman Catholic wedding ceremony. Part of the wording on Lafone/Quevedo entry was as follows: "… after having been first married according to the Rites of the Roman Catholic Church & according to the laws of this Country, were married at the British Episcopal Church according to the Rites of the United Church of England & Ireland …". These circumstances were exceptional, and have given rise to much historical comment. The marriage between James Fisher and Louisa Alsina followed a similar double pattern.

By the Treaty of Amity and Commerce, signed between Great Britain and the provinces of the Río de la Plata, signed on 2nd February 1825, privileges were conceded, by Article XII, to the effect that "subjects of Great Britain residing in the provinces of La Plata should not be molested because of their religion, that they should enjoy freedom of conscience, and should be able to hold religious services either within their own houses or in special churches or chapels. Likewise, they were granted the right to bury their dead in their own cemeteries".

It was under the terms of this treaty that members of the Church of England in Argentina were permitted to be married according to Anglican rites, provided they were British subjects. The problems began to emerge when British men in Argentine began to wish to marry women born in Buenos Aires.

The difficulties that surrounded the Lafone/Quevedo marriage have been recounted in a number of articles and books.

Marriage after the calling of banns

There is a curious group of six marriages that took place between July 1834 and November 1837, in which the entry in the marriage register simply states that the couple "were married after the banns were duly published, in the British Episcopal Church". In the case of these weddings, the Rev. John Armstrong appears to have followed the general practice in England. This was that formal notice is given of the intended marriage on three successive Sundays during the normal worship service. We can only speculate, at the moment, why Armstrong acted in this way, and his reasons for ceasing to use the practice.

A tail note—the Marriage Certificate

The marriage certificate is a copy of the entry in the marriage register, certified by the clergyman taking the wedding, and given to the couple to keep. Basically, apart from the living testimony of those who were present at the ceremony itself, this is the only evidence that two people are married. The loss of the certificate means that the couple would have to contact the church in which they were married and ask for a replacement.

For those couples who returned to live in Europe, the certificate was an essential document needed to prove that they were man and wife, legally married in such a far off country.