Weddings are steeped in traditions; those that come naturally like the first kiss, some that come from bygone eras like a sixpence in your shoe. These are ubiquitous wedding traditions across the country but it begs the question are there any Yorkshire wedding traditions, specific to the area? Well, the one that crops up the most in Yorkshire is the untying of the lych gate. The first time we came across it, we had never heard of it but it keeps on appearing and it's believed to be a Yorkshire tradition. So here's how it goes... as the newlywed couple come down the church path to a shower of confetti, they approach a tied lych gate. The groom first throws out coins for the local village children (who invariably do show up to scrounge the slip pickings of a few pence!) and then produces his pocket knife to cut the tie on the gate to allow them to exit into the village. The meaning behind it might go something like this: whilst the couple are getting married inside the church, the village children tie up the gate and demand a payment before they untie it for the newlyweds to pass. Cheeky little buggers! In reality, it always seems to be the groom who unties it after paying the ransom and the tying of the gate is something that the ushers can do for you once everyone is inside the church. There's certainly connotations of 'tying the knot' and mirrors the tying of the priests stole. Regardless of the origins and it's true meaning, it's one of those nice little traditions you can add to your wedding and is a prevalent wedding tradition in Yorkshire that you can adopt and bring back more into custom again if you'd like to. It takes very little planning and you can put up a notice in your village or set up a Facebook event to encourage children to come and demand payment from you on your wedding day... it'll be fun! We're always on the look out for more Yorkshire Wedding Traditions so if you happen to know any, please do drop us an email and we'd love to share them with everyone else.