This surprised me

[Tresco]

At the moment, apparently, French girls can marry at 15, but boys can't till they are 18. I think 15 is way, way too young. I think 18 is way too young too, , but it surprised me that the ages were unequal, at the moment.

tresco

 

[Battypuss]

They are changing the law you both sexes have to be 18 before they can marry.

 

Anyway, if you can leave home at 16, what's going to stop you doing whatever anyway? Or in France, possible at 14 (with restrictions)?

[Tourangelle]

It is 15 with parental consent, but I agree it is way too young. In fact it is an archaic law from the nineteeth century, which was never used, but as it has been used more and more recently, with a suspicion that there are some young girls being forces into marriage it is being changed

[Teamedup]

Wasn't Patrick Sebastien married at some very very young age?

[letrangere]

Wow, this surprised me too.  Also, though from a different angle, if you think about it, surely a young man could say it's sexual discrimation?  But absolutely right that the law's being changed to make 18 min age for both.  Wonder how many young girls do marry at 15 today?  M

[Mistral]

I had a pupil who married at 15, with her mother's consent (actually if I remember right, her mother "disenfranchised" her, so she was considered to be an adult)

It is possible to marry even younger but for that you need the president's consent. My husband once had a 12 year old pupil who had married in another country but needed presidential permission to be considered married here in france. (I don't know the exact details)

[Tresco]

 

'Anyway, if you can leave home at 16, what's going to stop you doing whatever anyway?'

Depends what 'whatever' is. To me leaving home at 16, is one thing, getting married entirely another. If a say, 16 year old leaves home to travel, get a job or goes to 6th Form in a different place, or of course to escape an abusive situation at home, to me those would be good things, positive things.

With regard to forced marriages, anything that prevents them is a good thing. Some 15 year olds simply have not developed enough to challenge their parents on this, by the time they are 18 they are far more likely to be able to have the possibility of, for instance, financial resources, supportive friends etc which enable them to resist.

tresco

[Val_2]

16 is ridiculous,why they havn't even left school properly and if they do,they can't get a job with no qualifications as they are too young. French kids are not grown up enough at that age compared to their british counterparts because of the close family traditions here,why half the kids round here have never been to a disco,bar or on holiday without their parents at that age and a lot older.

[Tresco]

I agree entirely Val, and just in case anyone misunderstood what I said, I perhaps should have made it clearer I was basing my view on my knowing English teenagers in England. I think I used the term 6th Form college anyway, so I hope it wasn't too unclear.

I don't really know any teenagers here, French or English, so if I had tried to say what you did, it would have been couched in terms like, 'I suspect, or I would guess' - relating to the supposed maturity of 16 year olds and marriage being ok or indeed just the same as any other 'choice' they might make at that age, ('whatever').

tresco