Illness and Death
On 1 April 1777 Henry's death was falsely reported in the newspapers, and threw James Boswell into "a state of very uneasy uncertainty".
On 8 or 11 June 1779, Thrale went to the house of his sister – Mrs Susannah Nesbitt – to read the will of her husband Arnold Nesbitt, MP for Cricklade. During the meal, Henry had his first stroke. Read more >> The second stroke came on 19 or 21 February 1780; on 10 September he had a third, while canvassing constituents during the 1780 general election campaign.
The strokes were largely caused by Henry's voracious appetite for large indulgent meals, accompanied by large quantities of ale.
Henry Thrale died in London at 5 a.m. April 4, 1781, with his wife and Johnson by his side. He was buried in the crypt of St. Leonards Church, Streatham. Henry's epitaph was written by Samuel Johnson.
Read more about this topic: Henry Thrale
Famous quotes containing the words illness and, illness and/or death:
“... how I understand that love of living, of being in this wonderful, astounding world even if one can look at it only through the prison bars of illness and suffering! Plus je vois, the more I am thrilled by the spectacle.”
—Edith Wharton (1862–1937)
“More than illness or death, the American journalist fears standing alone against the whim of his owners or the prejudices of his audience. Deprive William Safire of the insignia of the New York Times, and he would have a hard time selling his truths to a weekly broadsheet in suburban Duluth.”
—Lewis H. Lapham (b. 1935)
“People named John and Mary never divorce. For better or for worse, in madness and in saneness, they seem bound together for eternity by their rudimentary nomenclature. They may loathe and despise one another, quarrel, weep, and commit mayhem, but they are not free to divorce. Tom, Dick, and Harry can go to Reno on a whim, but nothing short of death can separate John and Mary.”
—John Cheever (1912–1982)