Marriage has been a formalized institution since almost the beginning of time. It exists in almost every culture, whether it is an arranged marriage, marriage of need, or a love story. However, according to philosopher Voltaire, divorce has probably been around for just as long as marriage.
The institution of marriage had legal ramifications in Europe similar to our modern day American institution of marriage. Divorce formally became part of the European culture in the 16th century. Prior to this time, much of the European world was Catholic, and so divorce was not an option. The Catholic Church did allow annulments, which were mostly used to stop bigamous marriages. Annulments were rarely filed, though they were easy to get.
Protestants claimed annulments were equivalent to divorces, and were in support of legal divorces. King Henry VII, of England, was one of the first famous divorcees. The Protestant push for the legalization of divorce, which was against the Catholic Church, created a drastic cultural change both religiously and legally in Europe.
Historically, religion was the basis for bringing two people together in a marriage. Later, divorces in Switzerland and the U.K. were granted from secular power sources. There was usually some fault in the marriage, but the reasons for divorce were always listed as biblical.
Much of the history of divorce in Europe set an example for the colonists in North America, and eventually the American people began to seek divorces as no-fault divorce or fault divorce.
The law seeks to end a marriage in a quick and easy way that makes it worthwhile for both parties to end the marriage. If you are seeking divorce, contact a Kane County divorce attorney who knows all of the aspects of the law to make your divorce finalized.
