A consequential marriage was once arranged between two politically-powerful families in the ancient Greek city of Epidamnus (later known as Dyrrhachium to the Romans and located approximately at modern-day Durrës in Albania). In the lead-up to the wedding day, however, something happened that caused a feud between the two families, or, at least, between the fathers of the fiancés. The circumstances of what happened are vague, but the groom’s father—who was an official in the government—ultimately was involved in state actions that imposed a fine on the father of the bride. This, in turn, caused the bride’s father to carry out political machinations of his own, eventually leading a faction in a takeover of the government and bringing about constitutional change. On these curious events, the philosopher Aristotle (c. 384-322 BCE) wrote, ”At Epidamnus also a change in constitution arose out of matrimonial affairs. Someone had promised his daughter in marriage: the father of the intended bride-groom became one of the officials and imposed a fine on this man who, feeling insulted, attracted to his side those who were not sharers in the constitution” (Aristotle, Politics, Bekker number 1304a). As to what happened to the bride, the groom, and their wedding, the account remains vague. It seems unlikely that the marriage went forward, given the hostility between the family and the uncommitted past tense used to describe the “intended bride-groom” and the father who “had promised” his daughter in marriage. Whatever the case, the record made no mention of the wedding having occurred.
Written by C. Keith Hansley
Picture Attribution: (Terracotta lekythos (oil flask) depicting a wedding procession, attributed to the Amasis Painterca (c. 550–530 BCE), [Public Domain] via Creative Commons and the MET).
Sources:
- The Politics by Aristotle, translated by T. A. Sinclair and revised by T. J. Saunders. London: Penguin Classics, 1962, 1992.
