Wedding cakes in the marriage ceremony have been around for many years. It is believed that during the Roman times, a simple cake was made from wheat or barley. During the marriage ceremony, the groom would eat a piece of the cake and then he would break the rest over the head of the bride. The breaking of the bread over the brides head was said to be a sign of good fortune, long life and to having many children.
It is told that in medieval England, there was a tradition to pile small buns in front of the marriage couple. The pile was stacked high enough so that the bride and groom could barely see one another. If the bride and groom managed to share a kiss over the stack, it was supposed to symbolize a lifetime of prosperity. However, during the reign of King Charles II, a French chef paid a visit to London and he observed the cake piling ritual. The chef found this ritual inconvenient and he decided that he would use short lengths of broom sticks to separate the layers. The cakes had to be prepared in advance and due to the lack or refrigeration, they had to be frosted in lard to stop them from drying out. Before the wedding ceremony, the lard was scraped from the cake, however, in later years to improve the taste of the lard, sugar was added and the lard was left on the cake as a form of decorative icing. These cakes must have resembled the more familiar wedding cakes which we are used to seeing today.
In the 17th Century it is believed that the Bride's Pie was popular amongst less affluent ceremonies. The pie may have contained sweet breads, a mince pie or may have been made from mutton. The pie was said to contain a ring which was made from glass. It is believed that the woman who found the ring was said to be the next to be married.
By the 19th Century the wedding cake became more popular, which may have been a single tiered plum cake and the Bride's Pie began to disappear.
Wedding cakes are often white, which can be attributed to the fact that the colour white is often associated with purity. It is believed that there is a visual connection between the cake and the bride. The wedding cake was often referred to as the bride's cake, which further strengthens the fact that the bride is the central figure on the wedding day. However, over time there has been a trend to move away from the tradition of having a white wedding dress and often the wedding cake colour is chosen to match the colour of the bride's dress.
The cutting of the wedding cake is said to be symbolic of the first task that the man and wife share together. Initially the cutting of the cake was done by the bride and the cake would be shared amongst the guests. However, as the number of guests grew, the task was shared with the groom. When the first piece of cake is cut, it is shared between the bride and groom which again is symbolic of the bride and groom providing for each other.
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