A HUSBAND took his own life after his marriage collapsed within three years of tying the knot, an inquest heard.

Mark Goodchild wed bride Priyanka Goodchild just four months after meeting her on an internet dating website.

But within a year of marriage their relationship became dominated by rows and arguments causing him to suffer spiralling stress and her to eventually leave the family home.

He was found hanging in the garage of their Chandlers Ford home surrounded by wedding photos, just days after papers relating to their proposed divorce came through.

A Winchester inquest heard how Mr Goodchild, 41, met Priyanka online in November 2011 and married the following March before moving to a house in Burley Down with her two young sons.

A letter from Priyanka read to the inquest described the couple's relationship as “passionate” but said both were “possessive” of each other and disliked the other having friends of the opposite sex.

She claimed she began "hitting back" at him following repeated occasions when he "pushed and slapped her" and sent her abusive text messages.

She said he regularly threatened to take his own life but she failed to believe the threats, it was heard.

But a letter from Mr Goodchild written to his solicitor, read to court accused Priyanka of physically attacking him on their first wedding anniversary where she scratched his face in an argument.

He wrote that more attacks followed adding: "I've had numerous cuts to my head, chest and shoulders and torn garments of clothing."

The spiralling marital problems led him to start a course of antidepressants in October 2014 and seek marriage counselling sessions, it was heard.

They eventually separated - briefly getting back together in November 2014 - before she left the house.

The inquest heard how Mr Goodchild was arrested on June 27 on suspicion of assaulting Priyanka who subsequently dropped the charges.

His mother Rosemary Goodchild told the inquest it related to historic allegations dating back to May 2012. She said the inquest the couple began rowing within months of the wedding claiming Priyanka displayed "bizarre and irrational" behaviour and regularly accused her son of looking at other women.

But Rosemary Goodchild found him hanging in the garage on July 15 of this year - the morning after sending his wife a desperate answerphone message saying "I'm falling apart. I can't cope - I love you so much".

DC Marie Todd said Mr Goodchild had “bombarded” his wife with text in his last days which Priyanka had deleted, but that police were unable to unlock Mark's phone which Rosemary Goodchild believed held information on alleged abuse against him.

Coroner Graham Short said it was unclear which party attacked the other first but that the divorce proceedings had a “profound effect” on Mr Goodchild.

Recording a suicide verdict he said: “At the end of that period he was suffering from depression and suffering from police investigation that was on going and an ongoing worry for him. He was being forced to lose his home and had a financial price as a result of the mortgage and its ending. “He didn’t know the exits and chose to end his life.”

But afterwards Rosemary Goodchild hailed her son as "gentle, caring, hardworking and intelligent" who had been driven to despair by the relationship's "extreme stresses".

Hampshire Police said they are unable to comment on individual cases but Detective Chief Inspector Tim Rowlandson said: “Hampshire Constabulary responds to every incident of domestic abuse based on the individual facts of each case. Officers assess the situation based on what they find when they arrive. We recognise that both men and women can be victims. Our priority when dealing with any incident of domestic abuse is keeping those involved safe and looking for ways to work with partners to stop any re-occurrence.”