Totally off Topic....??

[leefer]

Hi all.

I do a lot of family history and that has got me interested in Transportation to Australia etc all those years back.
I have tried to get a defining answer to my question but had no luck even when talking to people related to the convicts of years gone by.
Just to say contrary to popular belief most of the convicts sent abroad were not henious criminals but in truth many were sent away for relatively simple things like stealing bread or a sheep....many woman sent were stealing to feed the children they had,of course there were many bad apples sent also but in the main most were ordinary folk who were spared the death penalty and were sent away....indeed many did well and after the sentences(maybe pardoned or just done the time)went on to be the people that helped mould the fledgling countries...Australia Canada and the USA.
Anyway the question is once a criminal man or woman were sentenced to transportation(minimum 7 years max life)by the letter of the law was it the case that the marriage by law was ended because you were a criminal.
Now i know that many criminals were indeed reunited with there other halfs later on when the sentence was finished so were they still married?
I ask because there are many cases where criminals got remaried in there adopted countries and census records show they were already married
I know a few will wonder what the hell i am on aboutso apologies for that but...i have looked at Wiki and emailed certain organisations but cannot get a defining yes/no answer........so any DEFINATE info with regard the law would be appreciated

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Convict_women_in_Australia

As i say like the above link there is plenty of info on certain aspects but i cannot trace a definate on the law once you were sentenced......cheers all.

[Samdy Gray]

Do you mean the convict remarrying in Oz, or the spouse remarrying in the UK?

[leefer]

Both....

[Ginginho]

I did a search of my family history a couple of years ago, I found a hell of a lot of people now in Australia with the same surname that had family traced back to Wiltshire. Might well have a few distant relatives there myself.

I can think of worse punishments than being sent to Australia to live though.
Imagine if they brought that back?

[Flashheart]

I have relatives in Oz. Might even be meeting one here in Bangkok soon.

[leefer]

For some it was a blessing in disguise,they went on to have a much better life away from cold harsh Britain most of us in our past family trees would have a relative,close or distant sent away,many of us have relatives abroad which were as a direct result of transportation that we know little or nothing about.

Just bugging me on this marriage/divorce thing.

[Samdy Gray]

AFAIK, if your spouse was in a different country, you were free to remarry after 7 years.

[leefer]

AFAIK, if your spouse was in a different country, you were free to remarry after 7 years.

That sounds promising,could you tell me your source Sam...AFAIK?

[Samdy Gray]

There's a little about it here: http://members.iinet.net.au/~perthdps/convicts/res-10.html

[leefer]

Cheers Sam,seems the law was a little flimsy and loopholes were found i presume as i cannot find a definate law which when you think how the church percieved marriage in those times is a suprise to me.