In this article the practices of Uppsala University and Åbo
Academy council were studied in the context of the crimes of
premarital sex and breaches of promise. Special attention was
given to marriage. According to Swedish historian Malin Lennartsson,
the State’s ambition to centralize power and the changes in the
judi- cial customs during the 17th century, led to the growing
power of secular courts, as well as families and men in the hearing
of breach of promise cases. At the same time the Church, individuals
and women lost power. In Uppsala the development conformed to
Lennartsson’s findings. However, in Åbo the Church, individuals
and women maintained their position throughout the century. It
is likely that the difference was due to variations in the economies
of the two cities. In Uppsala, the majority of inhabitants were
involved in farming and landowning was com- mon, whereas in Åbo
the main source of income was trade. Later, in 19th-century Finland,
the landowning nobility and peasants wished to retain the guardianship
of women, and thus their marriages, whereas burghers were in
favor of reform. It appears that this situation existed already
in the 17th century.