George Orwell died of tuberculosis

It is a fact that George Orwell died of tuberculosis. After being diagnosed with tuberculosis in December 1947, Orwell's health deteriorated further. He courted Sonia Brownell in mid-1949, and they announced their engagement in September, just before he was admitted to University College Hospital in London. Sonia took the responsibility for Orwell's affairs and assiduously attended to him in the hospital. On October 13, 1949, Orwell married in a hospital room, with David Astor as his best man. By Christmas, Orwell's health had deteriorated once more. Potts paid Orwell a visit on the evening of January 20, 1950, and sneaked out when he saw him sleeping. Later, Jack Harrison paid a visit and said that Orwell had given him a 25% stake in the company. An artery burst in Orwell's lungs early on the morning of January 21, killing him at the age of 46.

Orwell had asked to be buried according to Anglican custom in the churchyard of the nearest church to where he died. The graveyards in central London were full, so his wife asked his friends if they knew of a church with space in its graveyard, in an effort to ensure his final desires were met. David Astor lived in Sutton Courtenay, Oxfordshire, and arranged for Orwell to be buried in the All Saints' churchyard there. Orwell's gravestone bears the epitaph: "Here lies Eric Arthur Blair, born June 25th, 1903, died January 21st, 1950" with no mention of his better-renowned pen name.