History Lessong: Bridal Entourage

There's more to the bridal party than matching dresses and planning the bachelor party. Modern-day attendants often help soothe an anxious bride or groom, but historically they served a more protective role.

Roman law required 10 witnesses at wedding ceremonies, where bridesmaids and ushers dressed in matching costumes—so the “evil spirits” thought to attend the happy occasion couldn’t pick out the bride and groom. As late as 19th-century England, the superstitious believed ill wishers could curse the happy couple, according to author and historian Margaret Baker. “There is safety in numbers and uniformity, but bridesmaids do not escape unscathed,” Baker writes. “ ‘Thrice a bridesmaid, never a bride,’ is a direct reference to the ill-wishing a bridesmaid . . . absorbed.”

Whew. With warnings cast aside, couples are breaking from tradition to grant different titles to their attendants, or asking for witnesses of the opposite sex, says wedding planner Rita Swanson of Premier Planning Services. “It’s really about who’s closest to them, and who’s going to support them,” she says.

Brides may invite a brother or male best friend to serve as “bridesman,” and grooms are known to include “groomsmaids.” Can’t decide? Some couples ditch the individual entourages and opt for a combined party of “friends of honor.”