Wedding Trivia: Phantom Bridesmaids

In medieval times, the bride and groom would supposedly be on guard for any evil spirits that might be trying to halt the marriage and stop the ceremony, perhaps ghosts of relatives that were against the union. So the bride would enlist the help of friends who would dress exactly like the bride as a decoy for those clearly short sighted spirits, so that they would not be interrupted during the wedding. The tradition of dressing like the bride obviously died out, but the idea that the bridesmaids should all dress the same continued.

Being asked to be a bridesmaid back then, I imagine, wasn't as flattering.

Holly