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A life lived over three centuries: UK's oldest woman dies aged 115 survived by 40 grandchildren Sant Kaur Bajwa was the UK's oldest and world's second-oldest person She was born in 1898 and lived through two world wars Mrs Bajwa left behind 28 great-grandchildren By Sam Webb PUBLISHED: 08:28, 23 July 2013 | UPDATED: 10:11, 23 July 2013 The UK's oldest person has died at the age of 115 years and 199 days. Sant Kaur Bajwa was born on January 1 1898 in Pakistan but had lived in England since the 1960s, with her life spanning three centuries and two world wars. She was officially the UK's oldest and the world's second oldest person when she died of natural causes on Friday and is survived by 12 grandchildren and 28 great-grandchildren. Sant Kaur Bajwa, the UK's oldest person, who died last week at the age of 115 years and 199 days When her daughter died in 1972, Mrs Bajwa, then 74, took on the role of caring for her four children, including her twin sons who were just six at the time. The pair, Jim and Bob Rai, who are now aged 47, made a joint statement in tribute to their grandmother. 'She was a formidable woman. A parent should never have to outlive their children and our grandmother suffered more than her fair share of tragedy during her lifetime,' they said. 'It was her inner strength and resolve that carried her forward, she fought and stood tall as the matriarch of the family. She will be sorely missed and we will never forget her flamboyant yet modest personality.' Mrs Bajwa, with a unknown child (name, age and relationship not given), was born in what is now Pakistan but moved the Britain in the 1960s Record: At 55, she was less than halfway through her incredibly long life Mrs Bajwa, with a unknown child (name, age and relationship not given), was born in what is now Pakistan but moved the Britain in the 1960s. Born in Sialkote, Punjab, in what is now Pakistan, Mrs Bajwa lost both parents when she was young and she was raised by her elder sister. At the age of 16 she married a farmer and gave birth to four children, but her husband Munsha Singh died just six years after their marriage. In 1966 she migrated to Southall, west London, to live with her son-in-law and daughter and she remained in the area until her death. Her strong Sikh faith was said to give her the optimism and strength to live as long as she did. SIGNIFICANT EVENTS OF 1898, THE YEAR SANT KAUR BAJWA WAS BORN Henry Lindfield of Brighton was the world's first fatality from an automobile accident after his car rolled down a hill in Purley, Surrey and hit a tree. The British government makes a 99 year rent of Hong Kong from China. Guglielmo Marconi conducts a test radio telegraph transmission for Lloyd's between Ballycastle, County Antrim, and Rathlin Island, Ireland. C. S. Lewis, author of the Chronicles of Narnia series, is born Marie and Pierre Curie announce discovery of radium, changing science forever The United States captures Guam in the Spanish American War, making it the first U.S. overseas territory http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2374796/A-life-lived-centuries-UKs-oldest-woman-dies-aged-115.html