A civil ceremony is usually held at the local a couple of days or even months before a large church wedding.
A civil ceremony is all that is needed to make a marriage legal in Germany and many couples opt only for this simple ceremony that is usually held with a few close relatives and friends as witnesses.
The wedding eve party, called ‘Polterbend‘ (rumbling night), is held in which the couple is teased and dishes broken.
In Germany the traditional engagement ring is usually a gold band worn on the left hand.
After the wedding the same ring is worn on the right hand.
Engagement rings are commonly plain gold bands; rarely, if ever, ‘the big rock’ of a diamond.
An early wedding tradition involved driving the bride’s furniture to her future home in a cart, with driver and musicians.
Feb