Unlike widows, the widowers did not equate selfishness with freedom, or advantages in widowhood with freedom.
One widower has subsequently married for the third time, having been widowed twice.
Therefore, widowers were probably more attractive marriage partners than widows.
Moreover, widows outnumbered widowers even while women were still fecund and at risk of dying in childbirth.
Swedish law did provide widows and widowers with property rights.
It is noteworthy that widowers with unmarried co-resident children number a mere 5, in contrast to 111 widows.
It may be assumed with some confidence that most of the 'singles' were widows or widowers.
The third group consisted of 52 widows and widowers, some of whom had also married more than once, accounting for a further 59 possible marriages.
