William Blackstone
Death

Blackstone had long suffered from gout, and by November 1779 also had a nervous disorder which caused dizziness, high blood pressure, and possibly diabetes. By 3 February 1780 he was too weak to write, and after "some Days almost totally insensible", he died on 14 February at age 56. After a service conducted by Bishop Barrington on 22 February, Blackstone was buried in the family vault under St Peter's Church, Wallingford. As his estate at his death was worth less than £15,000, William Eden secured a £400 annual royal pension for Sarah Blackstone. The initial reaction to Blackstone's death was subdued, but in December 1780 the Fellows of All Souls College agreed that "a Statue be erected to the memory of Sr W Blackstone deceased". Constructed by John Bacon, the life-sized statue of Blackstone in his judicial robes cost £539, and has rested in the Codrington Library (now the All Souls College Library) since 1872. His brother-in-law, James Clitherow, also published in 1781 two volumes of his law reports which added £1,287 to the estate, and in 1782 the Biographical History of Sir William Blackstone appeared.
change_case:capital_word_frequency[4], length_constraints:number_sentences[6]