article_snippet: Anne Laurence, a historian with Open University, has found that pragmatic marriages made for the preservation or the transfer of wealth became more important during the Poldark era.
article_snippet: Anne Laurence study is based on around 400 marriage announcements in London newspapers when Her study was common to refer to a bride's wealth, according to The Observer.
article_snippet: At the same time, the very rich make prenuptial agreements and ever-larger divorce settlements make the news weekly. '
article_snippet: The preservation of a fortune concentrates the mind on pragmatic considerations.'
article_snippet: She gave an example of one of the marriage announcement's which said: 'On Tuesday last Gilbert Burton, Esq; eldest son to George Burton, Esq; was married at Foot's Cray near Eltham in Kent, to Miss Craddock, only daughter to Mr Craddock, late an eminent goldsmith in Lombard Street, a beautiful young lady with a fortune of £10,000.'
article_snippet: She study is to be presented at the annual conference of the Economic History Society.
article_snippet: A guide was published in 1742 to help men locate wealthy widows and spinsters.
article_snippet: More than 400 wealthy woman were listed in 'A Master Key to the Rich Ladies Treasury: the Widower and Batchelor's Directory' including their reputed fortune and  stock market investments.
article_snippet: The anonymous author cast The anonymous author net wide: several of the women were in the women 70s and 80s.
highlights_snippet: Historian Anne Laurence studied 400 announcements in London papers .
  