Samuel Pepys, the London diarist (Image: John Hayls/Public domain) That night the maids in the household of diarist Samuel Pepys were up late preparing food for the next day's Sunday dinner. And what if they escaped? Who first invaded Britannia? [85], On Monday evening, hopes were dashed that the massive stone walls of Baynard's Castle, Blackfriars would stay the course of the flames, the western counterpart of the Tower of London. The old St. Paul's Cathedral was destroyed, as were many other historic landmarks. Q3. The typical multistory timbered London tenement houses had "jetties" (projecting upper floors). Inspired by the families work throughout the day, Sara then went away to craft her own response to the Great Fire of London, using loads of rhyming fire imagery and deciding how best to merge all those ideas into one poem. A thousand watchmen or "bellmen" who patrolled the streets at night watched for fire as one of their duties. Much of it was left in the homes of private citizens from the days of the English Civil War. [112] The fire destroyed approximately 15 percent of the city's housing. [75] Suspicions rose to panic and collective paranoia on Monday, and both the Trained Bands and the Coldstream Guards focused less on fire fighting and more on rounding up foreigners and anyone else appearing suspicious, arresting them, rescuing them from mobs, or both. Public buildings, like churches, were paid for with money from a new coal tax. The people of London fought viciously and at last, after four days of tireless effort, they put the great fire out. It commemorated 1665-1666, the "year of miracles" of London. Versions of the report that appeared in print concluded that Hubert was one of a number of Catholic plotters responsible for starting the fire. For 37 years, The Backstreet was an iconic part of Londons leather and gay bar scene. What does Sam's silverware tell us about Pepys and his times? The fire lasted four days, and burned down over 13,000 homes. [124][125] The committee's report was presented to Parliament on 22 January 1667. [99] There were many separate fires still burning, but the Great Fire was over. fire started on Sunday 2nd September in the baker's shop of Thomas [41], London possessed advanced fire-fighting technology in the form of fire engines, which had been used in earlier large-scale fires. The area around Pudding Lane was full of warehouses containing highly flammable things like timber, rope and oil. The Great Fire of London Through the Eyes of Samuel Pepys. - 2. The fire "caused the largest dislocation of London's residential structure in its history until the Blitz". Our customer service team will review your report and will be in touch. And we'll meet Christopher Wren, a key figure in the design and building of a new city. [18] The only major area built with brick or stone was the wealthy centre of the city, where the mansions of the merchants and brokers stood on spacious lots, surrounded by an inner ring of overcrowded poorer parishes, in which all available building space was used to accommodate the rapidly growing population. [8] By "inartificial", Evelyn meant unplanned and makeshift, the result of organic growth and unregulated urban sprawl. This was difficult because the wind forced the fire across any gaps created. He realised that the fire posedA very serious threat. [152], In 1667 strict new fire regulations were imposed in London to reduce the risk of future fire and allow any fire that did occur to be more easily extinguished. Enter Your E-mail Address here: London was a big city in 1666. [16] It had experienced several major fires before 1666, the most recent in 1633. The Great Fire of London by Ben Johnson The people of London who had managed to survive the Great Plague in 1665 must have thought that the year 1666 could only be better, and couldn't possibly be worse! His maid was not so National curriculum objectives: KS1 History: Y1. [24][25] London was also full of black powder, especially along the riverfront where ship chandlers filled wooden barrels with their stocks. They had a narrow footprint at ground level, but maximised their use of land by "encroaching" on the street with the gradually increasing size of their upper storeys. Coordinated firefighting efforts were simultaneously getting underway. Great skills builder . It also featured heavily in textbooks for the nascent specialty of city planning and was referenced by reports on the reconstruction of London after the Second World War. [118] The official account of the fire in the London Gazette concluded that the fire was an accident: "it stressed the role of God in starting the flames and of the king in helping to stem them". The damage caused would have been lessIn sixteen sixty sixIf the houses weren't made from wood,If they were made from bricks. The great fire of London was a terrible tragedy that destroyed a lot of homes and properties in the city of London. Five to six hundred tons of powder was stored in the Tower of London. [125], Abroad in the Netherlands, the Great Fire of London was seen as a divine retribution for Holmes's Bonfire, the burning by the English of a Dutch town during the Second Anglo-Dutch War. "[81][82], Monday marked the beginning of organised action, even as order broke down in the streets, especially at the gates, and the fire raged unchecked. At 3 a.m. they woke their master and mistress "to tell us of a great fire they saw in the . [150], According to Jacob Field, "the reaction to the Fire revealed England's long-standing hostility to Catholics, which manifested itself most visibly at times of crisis". [164][161], Although it was never implemented, Wren's plan for the rebuilding of London has itself had a significant cultural impact. Annus Mirabilis is a poem written by John Dryden published in 1667. As when some dire usurper Heav'n provides. It too had little impact. Three short animations exploring The Gunpowder Plot of 1605 - why it happened, the main events of the Plot, and the consequences for Guy Fawkes and the other plotters. We tackle some common myths and misconceptions about this well-known disaster. [87] The Duke of York's command post at Temple Bar, where Strand meets Fleet Street, was supposed to stop the fire's westward advance towards the Palace of Whitehall. The plot is now "within the roadway of Monument Street". It was the diarist Samuel Pepys who realised how great the threat was, and took the news to the king. Maureen's ancestors are all-seeing and all-hearing: they have access-all-areas passes to the dirtiest, darkest corners of history! After enjoying the poem, please scroll down a little further to find out some more facts, that will help you discuss the subject with your child for a little longer. He found that houses were still not being pulled down, in spite of Bloodworth's assurances to Pepys, and daringly overrode the authority of Bloodworth to order wholesale demolitions west of the fire zone. lucky, and she did not escape. The flames crept towards the riverfront and set alight the water wheels under London Bridge, eliminating the supply of piped water. It was under these conditions, that a fire started at 83-85 Summer Street on the evening of November 9, 1872. When the auto-complete results are available, use the up and down arrows to review and Enter to select. [116] Charles II encouraged the homeless to move away from London and settle elsewhere, immediately issuing a proclamation that "all Cities and Towns whatsoever shall without any contradiction receive the said distressed persons and permit them the free exercise of their manual trades". The year was 1666,Late one September night,The bakers shop in Pudding LaneGlowed with an orange light.The baker's oven was on fire The flames began to spread.Thomas the baker was upstairsHe was asleep in bed. 'A Refusal to Mourn the Death, by Fire, of a Child in London' by Dylan Thomas is a four stanza poem that is divided into sets of six lines, or sestets. James and his life guards rode up and down the streets all Monday, "rescuing foreigners from the mob" and attempting to keep order. These companies hired private firemen and offered incentives for clients who took measures to prevent firesfor example, a cheaper rate for brick versus wooden buildings. / is burnd and drownd in tears. But there were also heroic couplets and Pindaric odes and Latin verses. It's a fun poem, but educational too. By William Blake. The section "Monday" is based on Tinniswood, 5874, unless otherwise indicated. By the Saturday after the fire "the markets were operating well enough to supply the people" at Moorfields. "[101] Most refugees camped in any nearby available unburned area to see if they could salvage anything from their homes. A firehook was a heavy pole perhaps 30 feet (9m) long with a strong hook and ring at one end, which would be attached to the roof trees of a threatened house and operated by means of ropes and pulleys to pull down the building. But the most remarkable thing about this literature of loss is that almost as soon as it saw the light of day it evolved into a literature of renewal. [46] The neighbours tried to help douse the fire; after an hour, the parish constables arrived and judged that the adjoining houses had better be demolished to prevent further spread. Amazingly, only a few people are recorded as having died during the fire. Discover how Londoners created the Christmas traditions we enjoy today. The section "Fire hazards in the City" is based on Hanson, 77101 unless otherwise indicated. The Great Fire of London - Samuel Pepys 2015-03-19 and I blew. It is true that several fire engines fell into the Thames while they were being filled with water. The easiest way to state the cause of the Great Fire of London is to blame Thomas Farynor and his family and servants. By the end of the year, only 150 new houses had been built. Oh, the miserable and calamitous spectacle! The aftermath was devastating. [131], A special Fire Court was set up from February 1667 to December 1668, and again from 1670 to February 1676. Firework Poems. What could a poem inspired by the Great Fire look and sound like? 3. Charles took command at once, ordering the demolition of houses, and [31] Self-reliant community procedures were in place for dealing with fires, and they were usually effective. When the king was told about thisHe was really upset. Resources used were cereal boxes, white towels, brown fabric, felts, fleece, black bias binding & tissue paper. They created firebreaks by blowing up houses on a large scale in the vicinity, halting the advance of the fire. Contemporary maps record the site as 23 Pudding Lane. The section "17th-century firefighting" is based on Tinniswood, 4652, and Hanson, 7578, unless otherwise indicated. [28], The crucial factor which frustrated firefighting efforts was the narrowness of the streets. And mark in every face I meet. Exhortations to bring workmen and measure the plots on which the houses had stood were mostly ignored by people worried about day-to-day survival, as well as by those who had left the capital; for one thing, with the shortage of labour following the fire, it was impossible to secure workmen for the purpose. On Tuesday night the wind dropped and the fire-fighters finally gained control. He hoped that the River Fleet would form a natural firebreak, making a stand with his firemen from the Fleet Bridge and down to the Thames. [137], The Crown and the City authorities attempted to negotiate compensation for the large-scale remodelling that these plans entailed, but that unrealistic idea had to be abandoned. A Modern Charlotte Mason. I was the circus animal escaped from its cage. equipment. Hubert was convicted, despite some misgivings about his fitness to plead, and hanged at Tyburn on 29 October 1666. When did it take place? Farynor, baker to King Charles II, in Pudding Lane. Evelyn was horrified at the numbers of distressed people filling it, some under tents, others in makeshift shacks: "Many [were] without a rag or any necessary utensils, bed or board reduced to extremest misery and poverty. A funny and educational story poem about The Great Fire of London for kids. It took some time until the last traces were put out: coal was still burning in cellars two months later. Throughout 1667 people cleared rubble and surveyed the burnt area. I wandered through each chartered street, Near where the chartered Thames does flow, A mark in every face I meet, . We'll encounter Samuel Pepys and learn how he documented The Fire in his famous diary. [137] The reconstruction saw improvements in hygiene and fire safety: wider streets, open and accessible wharves along the length of the Thames, with no houses obstructing access to the river, and, most importantly, buildings constructed of brick and stone, not wood. [146] The City of London Corporation borrowed heavily to fund its rebuilding, defaulting on its loans in 1683; as a result, it had its privileges stripped by Charles. in charge. Even in such an emergency, the idea of having the unpopular royal troops ordered into the City was political dynamite. Some people say sixteen, other people say only six. This model text is a letter written in role as a person who has escaped from the Great Fire of London. The mayor Joseph Guillim, for example, ends his Dreadful Burning with the hope that from our Ruind City may arise, / Another, whose high Towers may urge the Skies. [74], The fears of terrorism received an extra boost from the disruption of communications and news. The General Letter Office in Threadneedle Street, through which post passed for the entire country, burned down early on Monday morning. Here in Pudding Lane Life in the busy streets of London before The Great Fire. [141], In addition to the physical changes to London, the Great Fire had a significant demographic, social, political, economic, and cultural impact.