Restoration England 1660-1685Topic Summary
Topic Summary: The Great Fire of London, 1666
Part of The Great Fire of London — GCSE History
This topic summary covers Topic Summary: The Great Fire of London, 1666 within The Great Fire of London for GCSE History. Revise The Great Fire of London in Restoration England 1660-1685 for GCSE History with 9 exam-style questions and 4 flashcards. This topic shows up very often in GCSE exams, so students should be able to explain it clearly, not just recognise the term. It is section 17 of 17 in this topic. Use this topic summary to connect the idea to the wider topic before moving on to questions and flashcards.
Topic position
Section 17 of 17
Practice
9 questions
Recall
4 flashcards
Topic Summary: The Great Fire of London, 1666
Key Terms
- Firebreak: Demolishing buildings ahead of a fire to remove fuel and stop its spread — the only effective technique in 1666
- Jettied storey: Overhanging upper floor projecting over the street — common in Stuart London, banned by Rebuilding Act 1667
- Rebuilding Act 1667: Legislation requiring brick/stone construction, wider streets, no overhanging storeys — England's first building regulations
- Fire insurance: First established by Nicholas Barbon in 1680 — a direct consequence of the Great Fire
- Monument: Wren's 202-foot column (1677) commemorating the fire; inscription originally blamed Catholics
- Trained Bands: London's citizen militia, deployed to prevent looting during the fire
- Fire post: Coordinating stations set up around the burning city by Charles II's orders
Key Dates
- 2 September 1666: Fire starts at Farriner's bakery on Pudding Lane, 2am Sunday
- 2 September 1666: Lord Mayor Bludworth dismisses the fire and refuses to order firebreaks
- 5 September 1666: Fire stopped — firebreaks and dropping wind end four days of destruction
- 1667: Rebuilding Act passed — new building standards for London
- 1677: Monument completed by Christopher Wren
- 1680: Nicholas Barbon founds England's first fire insurance office
- 1711: New St Paul's Cathedral completed (Wren's masterpiece)
Key People
- Thomas Farriner: Baker on Pudding Lane whose oven started the fire; survived by climbing out of window
- Sir Thomas Bludworth: Lord Mayor who delayed ordering firebreaks — the critical failure of the response
- Charles II: King who personally supervised fire response; passed buckets; boosted morale
- Duke of York (James): Charles's brother; took effective command of firebreak operations
- Samuel Pepys: Navy Board official; wrote the most detailed eyewitness diary account; woke the King
- Christopher Wren: Architect who designed new St Paul's Cathedral (completed 1711) and 51 city churches
- Robert Hubert: French watchmaker who confessed to starting the fire and was hanged — almost certainly innocent
Must-Know Facts
- 13,200 houses destroyed; 87 churches destroyed including old St Paul's
- 100,000 Londoners made homeless
- Only 6 official deaths recorded (real number believed higher)
- Fire burned for 4 days: 2–5 September 1666
- Strong east wind drove flames westward — key spread factor
- Bludworth's delay in ordering firebreaks was the critical response failure
- Charles II personally helped fight fire — contrasts with his absence during the Plague
- Rebuilding Act 1667 banned timber construction and overhanging storeys
- Wren designed 51 churches and new St Paul's — but his city plan was rejected
- Robert Hubert hanged for arson despite almost certainly being innocent — shows anti-Catholic hysteria
- BWWS: Buildings, Weather, Wind, Slow response — four reasons it spread so far
Cross-Topic Links
- → Great Plague (Topic 53): The Plague (1665) immediately preceded the Fire (1666), and the overcrowded wooden housing that worsened plague spread was precisely the housing the Fire destroyed — the two crises are directly linked.
- → Royal Society (Topic 55): Hooke and Wren both worked on rebuilding London after the Fire — Hooke surveyed ruins and Wren designed 51 churches, showing how Restoration science had practical architectural applications.
- → Culture & Theatre (Topic 56): Wren is a figure in both topics — he was an astronomer turned architect; his work rebuilding St Paul's and the city churches represents the cultural as well as scientific achievement of the Restoration.
- → Popish Plot (Topic 58): Robert Hubert was hanged for starting the Fire despite being innocent — this judicial murder foreshadows the 35 wrongful executions during the Popish Plot, showing how anti-Catholic hysteria led to injustice.
- → Charles's Court (Topic 50): Charles personally fighting the Fire — in stark contrast to fleeing the Plague — is a key example of royal leadership used in "how far agree" essay questions about Charles's effectiveness as a monarch.