2. Divorces (Or Death) Are The Only Ways Out Of Marriage
Henry VIII introduced divorce to this country, and the only other option left available to us is, well, to die or have our partner die before us. Divorce is horrible, and messy, and carries the stigma of contradicting well ingrained religious teachings in our western society. It can have disconcerting effects on children, the put who is at fault for your divorce on this sheet of paper court system can transform you into mudslinging banshees as you argue over who gets the cushion that she bought but you wanted, and it has been rated as one of the most potentially stressful periods of modern life. And, er, death is also quite bad too. But wait! There is in fact a lesser known (yet also, far less applicable) way to end your marriage. One of the more hidden facts about Henry VIII is that he did not in fact bring divorce to this country- he brought the law of nullity. Now, the law of nullity is made of many things, but in short it concerns whether or not you have successfully performed the requirements of marriage (the preliminary stage) and whether or not your marriage is void (mostly concerning whether you have married your relatives or in-laws) or voidable (regarding lack of consummation, wilful failure to consummate, having a communicable venereal disease) etc. So have no fear those unhappy with til death do us part. If you missed out a vital part of the ceremony, if you accidentally married your half brother, or your other half failed to mention they had syphilis until you were on the Honeymoon - you may have a way out that does not entail a badly thought out divorce system or throwing them out of the window.