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The Great Fire of London 1666
All you want to know about ... The Great Fire of London.
Here is a clear, chronological account of this key event in history.
The timeline, glossary and reference headings make it easy to pinpoint all the essential dates, facts and personalities.
Diagrams, artwork and photographs of artefacts bring the topic to life.
This series is ideal for school project work or for those wanting to brush up on their historical facts.
Here is a clear, chronological account of this key event in history.
The timeline, glossary and reference headings make it easy to pinpoint all the essential dates, facts and personalities.
Diagrams, artwork and photographs of artefacts bring the topic to life.
This series is ideal for school project work or for those wanting to brush up on their historical facts.
48 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1996
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
March 22, 2018
This is an excellent little book as a starter to a history of the Great Fire of London; it has a timeline and glossary of relevant words to accompany a lively text and some good historical illustrations.
The timeline goes back to AD 64 when 'Rome burns' and moves through 1087 when the Saxon church of St Paul was destroyed by fire, 1212 when buildings north of London Bridge were destroyed by fire, five crucial days in 1666 when the Great Fire raged and was eventually controlled, the plans for rebuilding London submitted by Sir Christopher Wren and John Evelyn in September 1666, fire insurance being established in 1667, the completion of The Monument as a commemoration of the Fire in 1677, the first service being held in the new St Paul's Cathedral in 1710, a four-day fire south of London Bridge in 1861, Chicago burning down in 1871 to 1940 when St Paul's survived German bombs during the Second World War.
The body of the book then gives a brief history of other cities ablaze, how fires were fought in those early days, how the population coped with fire and how the Great Fire finally cleared the last remnants of plague left in London from 1665. It then concentrates on events surrounding the Great Fire beginning with Samuel Pepys recording in his diary, '... Jane called us up about three in the morning, to tell us of a great fire they saw in the city ... I thought it far enough off; and so went to bed again, and to sleep.' Fortunately for Pepys, his home in Seething Lane escaped the blaze.
Everywhere was as dry as tinder on that fateful 2 September 1666 when the wind fanned a few sparks from the premises of Thomas Farynor, master baker of Pudding Lane. An inquiry later found that Farynor had not extinguished his ovens properly and sparks set fire to a pile of wood with the flames quickly spreading to the nearby Star Inn. The Great Fire was underway.
Tinder-dry wooden buildings in narrow dirty streets, together with the strong east wind, created ideal conditions for the fire to spread rapidly. Even though as far back as 1189 a law had stated that houses were to be built of stone and roofs were to be covered with slate or tiles and in addition King James I had encouraged building with bricks while Charles II ordered the imprisonment of anyone who put up a timber-framed building, it made no difference. Bricks and stone were expensive so London remained predominantly a wooden city.
During the first day of the Great Fire, little action was taken to prevent the fire from spreading and people fled with their belongings to the open spaces surrounding the City of London and people also fled to the river where boats on the Thames were crowded. Pepys recorded, ' ... people fleeing [the fire] and nobody endeavouring to quench it, but to remove their goods and leave all to the fire'.
Eventually, albeit belatedly, the Lord Mayor finally agreed to houses being demolished so as to create a firebreak and then King Charles took charge and issued orders for the demolition of all houses in the path of the fire. In addition King Charles took to the streets to help the firefighting effort and his actions helped to restore order at a time of serious public fear and panic. He even took gold coins from his purse and distributed them to reward the brave actions of other people. Pepys by that time had removed some of his belongings, burying some important papers, wine and Parmesan cheese in the garden of his friend William Penn.
St Paul's Cathedral was destroyed, most of the 97 parish churches were burnt down, 13,200 houses, 400 streets and 44 of the 51 City of London company halls had been consumed by the flames, as well as inns, prisons and warehouses. But by 5 September, four days after it began, the Great Fire was under control. And by Friday 7 September John Evelyn was recording, 'I went this morning on foot from Whitehall as far as London Bridge ... with extraordinary difficulty, clambering over heaps of yet smoking rubbish ... the ground under my feet so hot, that it even burnt the soles of my shoes ...'
It was then left to Wren and Evelyn to submit their plans to rebuild the city but both proposed schemes were deemed too costly and too time-consuming so neither was acted upon. But London was rebuilt, many buildings on their original sites, and in 1667 a Rebuilding Act set out strict building regulations; building materials had to be brick or stone. The aftermath of the Great Fire saw fire insurance introduced and an official fire service created.
Pam Robson has produced a splendid introductory, but still nicely detailed, study of this historic event.
The timeline goes back to AD 64 when 'Rome burns' and moves through 1087 when the Saxon church of St Paul was destroyed by fire, 1212 when buildings north of London Bridge were destroyed by fire, five crucial days in 1666 when the Great Fire raged and was eventually controlled, the plans for rebuilding London submitted by Sir Christopher Wren and John Evelyn in September 1666, fire insurance being established in 1667, the completion of The Monument as a commemoration of the Fire in 1677, the first service being held in the new St Paul's Cathedral in 1710, a four-day fire south of London Bridge in 1861, Chicago burning down in 1871 to 1940 when St Paul's survived German bombs during the Second World War.
The body of the book then gives a brief history of other cities ablaze, how fires were fought in those early days, how the population coped with fire and how the Great Fire finally cleared the last remnants of plague left in London from 1665. It then concentrates on events surrounding the Great Fire beginning with Samuel Pepys recording in his diary, '... Jane called us up about three in the morning, to tell us of a great fire they saw in the city ... I thought it far enough off; and so went to bed again, and to sleep.' Fortunately for Pepys, his home in Seething Lane escaped the blaze.
Everywhere was as dry as tinder on that fateful 2 September 1666 when the wind fanned a few sparks from the premises of Thomas Farynor, master baker of Pudding Lane. An inquiry later found that Farynor had not extinguished his ovens properly and sparks set fire to a pile of wood with the flames quickly spreading to the nearby Star Inn. The Great Fire was underway.
Tinder-dry wooden buildings in narrow dirty streets, together with the strong east wind, created ideal conditions for the fire to spread rapidly. Even though as far back as 1189 a law had stated that houses were to be built of stone and roofs were to be covered with slate or tiles and in addition King James I had encouraged building with bricks while Charles II ordered the imprisonment of anyone who put up a timber-framed building, it made no difference. Bricks and stone were expensive so London remained predominantly a wooden city.
During the first day of the Great Fire, little action was taken to prevent the fire from spreading and people fled with their belongings to the open spaces surrounding the City of London and people also fled to the river where boats on the Thames were crowded. Pepys recorded, ' ... people fleeing [the fire] and nobody endeavouring to quench it, but to remove their goods and leave all to the fire'.
Eventually, albeit belatedly, the Lord Mayor finally agreed to houses being demolished so as to create a firebreak and then King Charles took charge and issued orders for the demolition of all houses in the path of the fire. In addition King Charles took to the streets to help the firefighting effort and his actions helped to restore order at a time of serious public fear and panic. He even took gold coins from his purse and distributed them to reward the brave actions of other people. Pepys by that time had removed some of his belongings, burying some important papers, wine and Parmesan cheese in the garden of his friend William Penn.
St Paul's Cathedral was destroyed, most of the 97 parish churches were burnt down, 13,200 houses, 400 streets and 44 of the 51 City of London company halls had been consumed by the flames, as well as inns, prisons and warehouses. But by 5 September, four days after it began, the Great Fire was under control. And by Friday 7 September John Evelyn was recording, 'I went this morning on foot from Whitehall as far as London Bridge ... with extraordinary difficulty, clambering over heaps of yet smoking rubbish ... the ground under my feet so hot, that it even burnt the soles of my shoes ...'
It was then left to Wren and Evelyn to submit their plans to rebuild the city but both proposed schemes were deemed too costly and too time-consuming so neither was acted upon. But London was rebuilt, many buildings on their original sites, and in 1667 a Rebuilding Act set out strict building regulations; building materials had to be brick or stone. The aftermath of the Great Fire saw fire insurance introduced and an official fire service created.
Pam Robson has produced a splendid introductory, but still nicely detailed, study of this historic event.
January 21, 2012
‘All about the Great Fire of London’ by Pam Robson is an information book that can be used in history lessons. It provides a useful timeline at the beginning of the book that illustrates when the Great Fire of 1666 occurred in relation to other great fires of London and other historical events of Britain.
The book is helpfully broken down so that each page tells us something different about the Great Fire of London, from eyewitness accounts to the introduction of fire insurance. The use of pictures on each page adds to the simplicity of the style of the book, making it a good read not just for children, but for adults who may need to brush up on their knowledge too. I myself found it a quick and easy read and learnt a lot from doing so. I would recommend anyone teaching this topic to also have a quick read of the book beforehand as it is will definitely benefit them.
The book is helpfully broken down so that each page tells us something different about the Great Fire of London, from eyewitness accounts to the introduction of fire insurance. The use of pictures on each page adds to the simplicity of the style of the book, making it a good read not just for children, but for adults who may need to brush up on their knowledge too. I myself found it a quick and easy read and learnt a lot from doing so. I would recommend anyone teaching this topic to also have a quick read of the book beforehand as it is will definitely benefit them.
February 27, 2016
A quick read summarizing the highlights of the Great Fire of London in 1666. With a brief history of other major fires, the roles of the law and the King and how it essentially created the fire insurance industry in England. Quick facts and great illustrations.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews