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Before 1666
By 1666, London was already recovering from an outbreak of bubonic plague, the death rate was far from that of the winter of the same year, and new workers filled the vacant seats.
The city looked like its former self, but under the mask of ordinary life there was nervousness and fear of falling victim to a disease that had not yet disappeared. -
September, 1st (Saturday)
In the evening of the first of September Thomas Farynor the baker forgot to put out one of his ovens. -
September, 2nd (1:00 am, Sunday)
A spark set fire to the straw on the bakery floor. The fire quickly engulfed the building and soon the city authorities learned about it. Since there was no running water in the city, firefighters of those years resorted to destroying buildings nearby from the burning in order to prevent the spread of fire. It was a hell of a job, but it was not used that night. -
September, 2nd (4:00 am)
London's mayor, sir Thomas Bloodworth, was advicedto demolish houses. It was a fatal mistake. The fire itself did not stop, and when the firefighters began to act, it was too late.
When the fire spread to other buildings, its spread was rapid. Old buildings, mostly made of wood, were engulfed in flames. Most of the houses of the poor had thatched roofs. Many buildings, built on the medieval principle, literally pressed on each other. -
September, 3rd (Monday)
The fire grew and went beyond the boundaries of its origin. The city of London district was quickly engulfed by fire, moving unimpeded to the North of the city. All attempts to extinguish the fire with scanty supplies of water were unsuccessful. -
September, 4th (Tuesday)
The fire has already engulfed the entire Central part of the city. The famous St. Paul's Cathedral burned down. The fire even ended up on the other side of the fleet river. They say that the infernal heat in that area caused hot metal to flow on the red pavement. -
September, 5th (Wednesday)
Strong winds finally died down, to bring the fire under control. -
September, 6th (Thursday)
The fire was totally extinguished, five-sixths of the heart of the city had been destroyed. -
The Monument
The Monument is located in the center of London. It is a Roman Doric column with a height of 61.57 meters, built in 1671-1677 by the architect Christopher Wren. It stands at 220 feet tall - the distance from its location to the site of Thomas Farynor's bakery - so if it fell over in the right direction, it would point to the exact spot where the fire started! -
St Paul's Cathedral
The Cathedral was built again by the architect Christopher Wren. The work was started in 1675 and completed in 1708. The official opening date of the Cathedral is October 20, 1708. It is located on top of Ludgate hill — the highest point in the city, and is the seat of the Bishop of London now.
