Matt Carver, 22, married Nicola Godfrey, 21, at Brasenose College chapel, Oxford, last Thursday but he complained of feeling unwell the next day. He lost his battle against leukaemia a short time later.

In bittersweet circumstances reminiscent of Shadowlands, a film about the author C.S. Lewis marrying cancer-stricken fan Joy Gresham, the couple had brought forward their wedding in the knowledge that Mr Carver did not have much time left.

Mrs Carver, studying maths at New College, told the Oxford Mail: "I'm just so happy that we made it to the wedding day. It was a true celebration of our love and was everything that we had dreamed of since we decided to get married.

"Matt was desperate to get married and it was such a relief to get through the day and become his wife, but obviously we would have wanted more time together."

Mr Carver, a Brasenose medieval history undergraduate from Newport in south Wales, was diagnosed with acute leukaemia in January, just weeks after the couple got engaged.

They had planned to marry in two years' time but brought forward the wedding when Mr Carver fell ill.

Of the wedding, his widow added: "He appeared to be in the best health he had been in for a long time. He looked fantastic, dressed up to the nines in his top hat and tails. On Friday morning he took a turn for the worse and we knew he was bad.

"Matt was the kind of person who put his heart and soul into everything they did. He was a fantastic man and I will miss him very much."

Mr Carver, who rowed and played cricket and rugby for Brasenose, was taken hospital where he later died.

Rev Graeme Richardson, the college chaplain, said: "He was an outstanding all-round student."

Sign up to the Yorkshire Evening Post's email alerts