Anglo-bride at left? Polish bride at right?

Anyone know why the bride is always on the groom's right in Poland but in Angloland they do things arse
-backwards (bride on the left)?
But what can you expect from people who actually contaminate perfectly good hot tea with milk!?

It's because in England one walks with a lady on one's left and in Poland it's the other way round. But that is clearly a detail which escapes those who spend their entire lives in the USA.

Or just that way round.

There are many possible explanations but I think it has something to do with practical things.
Polish knights and later nobles wore their swords (later sabres) on their's left side. If bride was on that side it would be uncomfortable and possibly dangerous.

I think that later around this practical, common sense behaviour grew symbolism and some superstitions (you can easily find some of them on internet). The right side is generaly considered as "better" than left in Poland.

It was considered (and still is by some) unrespectful to women to walk on their right side. When mesalliance wedding took place woman was on left side, to show that she have lower status and that she will not inherit title or any property of her husand. It was called "ślub z lewej ręki".

Alternative custom, although opinions differ: on a sidewalk a woman walks inside, a man protectively outside.


Interesting..

An English custom as well once upon a time. It was done to avoid people emptying chamber pots out onto the streets. Not quite so gallant.

Not at all: swords were kept in sheaths for a reason.

The reason for keeping a woman on one's left is because one will want a person coming towards one to pass on one's right, so that if one needs to defend oneself (and one's fair lady) the attacker is on one's sword-arm side (the same reason why one rides a horse along the left side of a path/road) and not on the side where the fair lady is. It is not generally considered chivalrous to use a lady as a shield against one's attacker.

The allegedly Polish tradition was actually first introduced to Poland by the Teutonic knights who, as primarily defensive in nature (allegedly), showed this by walking on the left side of a woman so that they could raise their shield and use it if she needed defending.

I have heard that an exception are Polish military weddings. The uniformed groom is on the right so his right hand free to snap a spiffy salute without knocking the brides veil off.

BTW iwhile strolling down a street in Poland is it customary for the man to walk on the kerbside or is it 'the lady on the right' at all times?

The customs and traditions in that matter are not strictly followed now.