I suspect it's implicit in the marriage vows that both parties enter the marriage simultaneously, and each makes their vows contingent on the other party also making them.
However, I also suspect that most law relating to marriage has been around since Time Immemorial, so we're probably now operating largely on precedent.
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However, I also suspect that most law relating to marriage has been around since Time Immemorial, so we're probably now operating largely on precedent.
It hasn't actually. It was all revamped at some point in the eighteenth century. Before then, the law was very messy and random.