London Fire Research Paper

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London in the seventeenth century was a city filled with people, homes and buildings constructed of wood, and narrow roads. However, on the evening of September 2 this played a large part in a disastrous occurrence that would change London forever. In 1666 Thomas Farrinor, a baker, unsuccessfully extinguished his oven causing the Great fire of London to burn from September 2 to September 6, leaving thousands of London’s citizens homeless and churchless. On the dry summer night of September 2, 1666 in King Charles II’s home near the London Bridge, sparks from the bakers oven began to spread causing the nearby homes and buildings to burn. The Great Fire began in the bakery then spread to Stars Inn where it contained flammable equipment, which turned the fire into uncontrollable flames. …show more content…

Containing the flames became “difficult and time-consuming; those doing it were liable to being sued to compensation; and unless the timbers and other flammable material from the demolished buildings were removed from the site, they could still ignite and allow the fire to spread” (Hanson 29). As the panic and frustration continued, people began to gather their belongings and abandon London through the Thames River. Those without a roof seeked protection in hills and the rural part of the city. It took a couple of days for the fire to be put out due to the fact that there was no actual fire station procedure just buckets. After the fire was contained, about 100,000 people were left without a roof over their head and almost 90 churches were destroyed, including St. Paul’s

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