A recently widowed woman in England has died, just hours after the death of her husband.
There is a deeply held
cultural belief some individuals "die of a broken heart" after the loss of a partner or spouse, and research indicates that indeed, risk of serious cardiovascular events increases sharply during the bereavement period.
World War II veteran Clifford Hartland was 101 when he died on July 29. Just 14 hours later his 97-year-old wife Marjorie passed away — on what would have been the couple's 76th wedding anniversary.
The couple's daughter Christine, 67, told a local news source that her father had been a prisoner of war, and that her mother had rejected an initial determination that Clifford had been killed in action.
She recalled:
According to their daughter, Clifford and Marjorie Hartland were inseparable. Christine described speaking to her mother following Clifford's death, adding:
Clifford and Marjorie Hartland shared a funeral on August 12. Their daughter commented to local news sources that the pair "did every single thing together in life, so it's only right they have a joint funeral, too."