Kathleen Kennedy and Billy Hartington met at a garden party in July 1938 and instantly sparked a kindred friendship. However, the two would be forced to separate after Great Britain declared war on Germany in 1939, causing the Kennedy family to move back to the States. Emboldened by her eagerness to return to England and her duty to the war effort, Kennedy joined the American Red Cross and flew back to a war-ravaged London in 1943.
Upon her return to London, Kennedy and Hartington's friendship picked up where they had left it, soon deepening into a romantic courtship. Hartington's mother invited Kennedy to Christmas, and soon after, Hartigto proposed. The couple wed in an unassuming civil ceremony in the Caxton Hall Registry Office on May 6, 1944. Four months later, WWII would forever alter their lives.
Billy was called to service as a member of the British army on June 13, 1944. On September 9, the Marquess of Hartington was killed in action while fighting German forces in Belgium, ending the young couple's future together. And, although the war would prove to be the most insurmountable challenge the couple faced, it wasn't the only one.
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