Gretna Green, just one mile inside the Scottish border, has been associated
with marriages for
nearly 250 years.
Many places in and
around this small
village can lay
claim to being
marriage venues, but
Gretna Hall was the
first official stop
in Scotland for the
travelling
stagecoaches and
private carriages.
This made it the
obvious first choice
for a “Blacksmith’s
Wedding”… a hastily
performed ceremony
according to the law
of Scotland, where a
couple could marry
by declaration in
the presence of two
witnesses, “striking
while the iron is
hot”!
Gretna Hall mansion
house was built,
right in the centre
of Gretna Green, in
1710 as the home of
the local lord of
the manor. However,
by 1792 it had been
turned into a
coaching inn and,
being much grander
than the local
“tippling house” it
secured a high-class
clientele. Many a
nobleman or
aristocrat was
joined in matrimony
within these walls
as the Marriage
Registers confirm.
