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Thomas and Ann Shakeshaft, awarded the Dunmow flitch in 1751, being carried in procession through the town. Etching by George Cruikshank.

The awarding of a flitch of bacon to married couples who can swear to not having regretted their marriage for a year and a day is an old tradition, the remnants of which still survive in Great Dunmow, Essex.

The Dunmow tradition originated at the nearby Little Dunmow, where it was practiced until the mid-eighteenth century. The origin of the custom is unknown, but according to tradition it was instituted by Robert Fitzwalter in the 13th century. The Dunmow flitch was referred to in Piers Plowman and by Chaucer, and seems to have already been widely-known at that time. A similar tradition practiced at Wychnor in Staffordshire can be traced back to the fourteenth century; related customs are also known from mainland Europe in Brittany and Vienna. (Full article...)