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PBS News Hour

Bloodletting, blisters and the mystery of Washington’s death

Season 2014 Episode 3490 | 4m 45s

Learn the gruesome details of President George Washington’s final hours on the 215th anniversary of his death. The retired commander-in-chief woke up at 2 a.m. on Dec. 14, 1799, with a sore throat. After a series of medical procedures, including the draining of nearly 40 percent of his blood, he died that evening. Dr. Howard Markel of the University of Michigan shares the story with Jeffrey Brown.

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