was divorce legal in 1914?

Question

im doind a project and i kinda need to know! thanks!

Answer 1

"Prior to the latter decades of the 20th century, a spouse seeking divorce had to show a cause such as cruelty, incurable mental illness, or adultery. Even in such cases, a divorce was barred in cases such as the suing spouse's procurement or connivance (contributing to the fault, such as by arranging for adultery), condonation (forgiving the fault either explicitly or by continuing to cohabit after knowing of it), or recrimination (the suing spouse also being guilty). By the 1960s, however, the use of collusive or deceptive practices to bypass the fault system had become ubiquitous, and there was widespread agreement that something had to change. The no-fault divorce "revolution" began in 1969 in California, and was completed in 1985 (the last holdout was South Dakota). However, New York does impose a mandatory separation period before a divorce can be granted."

"United States" in "Law and divorce around the world" : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Law_and_divorce_around_the_world#United_States

Answer 2

It was, but it was far more difficult to obtain a divorce in those days.

Basically, one spouse had to have wronged the other in such a way as to dissolve the marriage, most commonly through adultery. A couple couldn't just sit down and decide to get divorced like they can today.

That led to some interesting tactics in obtaining a divorce.

Whenever the law puts up a barrier to arranging your affairs as you see fit, lawyers will often find a creative way around the law that lets their clients get their way without actually circumventing the law. However, since the acts that had to be proven to obtain a divorce were very disreputable (adultery, rape, sodomy, bestiality, etc.) there was still a very high barrier to obtaining a divorce and keeping your reputation.

Another tactic was to obtain a divorce in a country where the laws were less strict. Hollywood stars of the '40s and '50s were notorious for going across the border to Mexico for quickie divorces (e.g. Charlie Chaplin and Paulette Goddard).

The upshot of all this was that divorce was something only the rich could generally afford. Everyone else was more or less stuck in their marriage, no matter how bad it was. The alternative was simply for one party, usually the husband, simply to abandon his wife, who could then sue for divorce.

Also, don't forget about the enormous social stigma attached to divorce. If you were rich enough and not as worried about your reputation (like many Hollywood stars of bygone eras), that might not have been such a horrible thing. But anyone with a reputation to keep would have found it very difficult to obtain a divorce under any circumstances and keep their social standing.

Remember, Edward VIII was obliged to abdicate the throne of England in 1936 not because he was divorced but because he married someone who was.

Answer 3

Yes, but it depended on the state and whether a woman could initiate it. Men had been able to do it for centuries, but women being able to do it was much more recent. And remember, until even more recently, the grounds for divorce were adultery and only a few other things, which led to a lot of lying - no fault divorce is much more recent to our time.

Answer 4

Not only was marital divorce legal in other than Catholic dominated Countries and States, for centuries
The penalty, in the early American Colonies, for "debauchery" (married or single)was death, by hanging or stoning.
It is particularly interesting, in our culture with consideration the pronounced individual rights of "privacy"and "separation of church and state" ,that government has become involved in a very private, religious and civil matter. ("let no man put asunder")

Answer 5

Divorce, goes all the way back to the 1800's but only it was as bad. as it is now.

Answer 6

You must be American!

You don't even qualify in which country, you just assume.

So I kinda think if you're more clear with your questions, you'll get better answers.

Answer 7

Have you ever heard of Henry the Eighth!

Answer 8

Yes, it was. It just didn't happen that much-like nowadays.

Answer 9

ya it was