This book focuses on the development of marriage law in Ireland from 1937 to the present day, examining the relevant historical legal background to changes in the law in the 20th and early 21st centuries. It draws on legal sources and historical and empirical evidence about the reality of family life in Ireland, to raise broader questions about the appropriate role of law in establishing, preserving and developing inclusive social understandings of marriage. The impact of accurate empirical data about family life, external international influence and sustained activism as drivers in achieving meaningful social change is also evaluated.This original viewpoint highlights the initial ideological importance of marriage regulation in Ireland and its connection to national identity in a Catholic country. Historically, asymmetric social rules concerning marriage allowed those in power to favour particular religious groups; first the Protestant elite and then the Roman Catholic majority.
