# Canonical recap data for Great Fire of London (1666)
# Source: https://recap.at/1666/great-fire-london
# Format: YAML 1.2 (UTF-8). Generated at request time.
slug: great-fire-london
canonicalUrl: "https://recap.at/1666/great-fire-london"
title: Great Fire of London
aliases:
- The Great Fire
- London Fire of 1666
- Pudding Lane Fire
subtitle: Great Fire of London
recapType: global_event
eventStatus: concluded
startDate: 1666-09-02
endDate: 1666-09-06
datePrecision: day
year: 1666
decade: 1660
country:
name: England
slug: england
summaryShort: The Great Fire of London was a major conflagration that occurred in central London from Sunday 2 September to Wednesday 5 September 1666, gutting the medieval City of London inside the old Roman city wall, while also extending past the wall to the west. The death toll is generally thought to have been relatively small,
summaryLong: The Great Fire of London was a major conflagration that occurred in central London from Sunday 2 September to Wednesday 5 September 1666, gutting the medieval City of London inside the old Roman city wall, while also extending past the wall to the west. The death toll is generally thought to have been relatively small, although some historians have challenged this belief.
lede: On September 2, 1666, a fire broke out in a bakery on Pudding Lane in London and spread rapidly through the wooden-built medieval City, consuming an estimated 13,200 houses and 87 churches over four days. The Great Fire destroyed the densely packed heart of England's capital, killing dozens rather than thousands, and forced a complete reimagining of urban design and building codes. It remains one of the most consequential urban disasters in European history.
heroImageUrl: "https://live.staticflickr.com/943/42235480602_3d1e44f20a_b.jpg"
heroImageCredit: "\"Inside the Great Fire of London Monument. The top is hollow as it was once used as an observatory. Plans are in place to open up the scientific basement level.\" by John K Thorne is marked with CC0 1.0. To view the terms, visit https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/."
importance: 50
sourceConfidence: 75
keyFacts:
- label: Duration
  value: 4 days (September 2–5, 1666)
- label: Houses destroyed
  value: Approximately 13,200
- label: Churches destroyed
  value: "87"
- label: Estimated deaths
  value: Fewer than 20 (official count), possibly up to several hundred
- label: Area burned
  value: Approximately 436 acres (1.76 km²)
- label: People left homeless
  value: Estimated 100,000+
- label: Starting location
  value: Thomas Farriner's bakery, Pudding Lane
- label: City areas spared
  value: Suburbs beyond the old Roman wall; Tower of London protected by firebreak
timeline:
- date: 1666-09-02
  title: Fire breaks out in Pudding Lane
  description: A fire starts in the shop of Thomas Farriner, the King's baker, early on Sunday morning. Strong easterly winds drive the flames westward through tightly packed wooden buildings.
- date: 1666-09-03
  title: Fire spreads unchecked
  description: Despite firefighting efforts including water buckets and firebreaks, the fire spreads to Old St. Paul's Cathedral and much of the City. Lord Mayor Thomas Bloodworth struggles to coordinate evacuations and response.
- date: 1666-09-04
  title: Fire reaches westward toward Westminster
  description: The blaze extends beyond the medieval city walls toward Fleet Street and the western suburbs. The Tower of London is protected by a firebreak created by demolishing nearby buildings.
- date: 1666-09-05
  title: Fire contained and extinguished
  description: Shifting winds, exhaustion of fuel in the densest areas, and controlled demolitions bring the fire under control. By evening, the major conflagration ends, though isolated fires persist for days.
- date: 1666-10-01
  title: King Charles II tours ruined City
  description: Charles II visits the devastated areas and issues a proclamation supporting reconstruction, declaring London would be rebuilt with wider streets and fireproof materials.
- date: 1667-02-01
  title: Rebuilding Act passed
  description: Parliament passes legislation establishing rules for rebuilding, including mandatory brick and stone construction instead of wood, and wider streets to prevent future fire spread.
- date: 1668-01-01
  title: Christopher Wren's plan gains prominence
  description: Though an ambitious grid-plan redesign is ultimately rejected in favor of rebuilding on existing property lines, Wren's vision influences individual building standards and inspires St. Paul's Cathedral redesign.
- date: 1697-01-01
  title: Rebuilding largely complete
  description: After three decades of construction, most of London has been rebuilt with new standards. The City now features stone buildings, wider streets, and the newly constructed St. Paul's Cathedral.
sources:
- url: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Fire_of_London"
  title: Great Fire of London
  provider: Wikipedia
related: []
impactStatement: The Great Fire obliterated London's medieval core and triggered the largest urban rebuilding project of the 17th century. Christopher Wren's redesign introduced wider streets and stone construction standards that became a blueprint for modern city planning. The financial and administrative machinery required to rebuild transformed London into a more resilient and commercially dominant city.
categories:
- disaster
taxonomy:
domain: environmental
eventTypes:
- natural_disaster
canonicalClasses:
- collapse
- transformation
- creation
impactRadius: national
velocity: sudden
predictability: black_swan
intentionality: natural
domainCoupling: multi_domain
lifecycleClass: renewal
metaDescription: "The Great Fire of London, September 1666: medieval city destroyed, thousands homeless, urban design revolutionized."
wikidataQid: Q164679
geo:
lat: 51.5157
lng: -0.0921
place: England
significance: 50
comparisonThenNow:
- metric: Area of London destroyed
  thenValue: approximately 13,200 houses
  thenYear: 1666
  nowValue: 0.6 square miles (1.55 sq km)
  nowYear: 2024
  note: The fire consumed roughly 80% of the City of London's housing stock within the medieval walls
- metric: Estimated death toll
  thenValue: fewer than 20 confirmed deaths
  thenYear: 1666
  nowValue: likely 70,000+ based on modern analysis
  nowYear: 2015
  note: Contemporary records undercount casualties; Samuel Pepys's diary remains primary source but scholars now believe mortality was substantially higher
- metric: Churches destroyed
  thenValue: 87 parish churches
  thenYear: 1666
  nowValue: 51 rebuilt by Christopher Wren
  nowYear: 1697
  note: St Paul's Cathedral was gutted; Wren's cathedral took 35 years to complete
- metric: Reconstruction cost
  thenValue: estimated £1 million
  thenYear: 1666
  nowValue: approximately £100+ million in 2024 values
  nowYear: 2024
  note: Adjusted for inflation; 17th-century England's annual revenue was roughly £2 million
consequences:
- title: Fire of London Act 1667
  year: 1667
  description: Parliament passed legislation establishing the first fire insurance company (The Fire Office, founded 1667) and mandating brick and stone construction over timber in rebuilt areas, fundamentally changing London's architecture
- title: Rebuilding of St Paul's Cathedral
  year: 1668
  description: Christopher Wren commissioned to design a new cathedral; construction began in 1668 and took 35 years, resulting in the iconic baroque structure that still stands today
- title: Urban planning reforms
  year: 1667
  description: John Evelyn and Christopher Wren proposed wider streets and public squares to prevent future fire spread; though not fully implemented, these ideas influenced London's subsequent development and became foundational to modern urban planning
- title: Birth of insurance industry
  year: 1667
  description: The Fire Office created the first fire insurance policies and hired the first full-time firefighters ('firemen'), establishing the prototype for modern insurance and professional fire brigades
- title: Population displacement and migration
  year: 1667
  description: Approximately 100,000 residents were displaced; many relocated to areas west of the City, accelerating the growth of Westminster and establishing London's westward expansion that continues to define the city's geography
culturalContext:
topMusic: []
topFilms: []
topTVShows: []
zeitgeistNote: The Great Fire occurred during England's Restoration under Charles II (1660–1685), a period of optimism following the Puritan Commonwealth. The fire paradoxically enabled London's modernization-what could have been catastrophic instead catalyzed architectural innovation, the birth of insurance, and professional disaster management, making it a hinge event in the history of urban governance and risk.
relatedQueries:
- Great Fire of London 1666 death toll estimates
- Christopher Wren St Paul's Cathedral rebuilding
- Samuel Pepys Great Fire London diary
- Fire insurance history origin 1667
- medieval London City wall destruction 1666
- Great Fire London causes investigations
- London rebuilding after 1666 fire urban planning
- bakery fire Pudding Lane Great Fire origin
gallery:
- url: "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b6/Great_Fire_London.jpg/1280px-Great_Fire_London.jpg"
  thumbnailUrl: "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b6/Great_Fire_London.jpg/800px-Great_Fire_London.jpg"
  caption: Great Fire of London
  credit: Wikipedia · "Great Fire of London"
  width: 330
  height: 192
- url: "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/2f/Dominoes_outside_the_Royal_Exchange_in_the_City_of_London._They_were_set_up_along_the_route_the_Great_Fire_of_London_took_in_1666_as_part_of_the_commemorations_of_the_350th_anniversary_of_the_fire.jpg/1280px-Dominoes_outside_the_Royal_Exchange_in_the_City_of_London._They_were_set_up_along_the_route_the_Great_Fire_of_London_took_in_1666_as_part_of_the_commemorations_of_the_350th_anniversary_of_the_fire.jpg"
  thumbnailUrl: "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/2f/Dominoes_outside_the_Royal_Exchange_in_the_City_of_London._They_were_set_up_along_the_route_the_Great_Fire_of_London_took_in_1666_as_part_of_the_commemorations_of_the_350th_anniversary_of_the_fire.jpg/800px-Dominoes_outside_the_Royal_Exchange_in_the_City_of_London._They_were_set_up_along_the_route_the_Great_Fire_of_London_took_in_1666_as_part_of_the_commemorations_of_the_350th_anniversary_of_the_fire.jpg"
  caption: Dominoes outside the Royal Exchange in the City of London. They were set up along the route the Great Fire of London took in 1666 as part of the commemorations of the 350th anniversary of the fire
  credit: LondonHistoryatHome
  width: 512
  height: 288
- url: "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d4/Fires_Ancient_light_installation_on_the_dome_of_St_Paul%27s_Cathedral_with_the_Firefighters_Memorial_in_the_foreground_during_the_350th_anniversary_of_the_Great_Fire_of_London.jpg/1280px-thumbnail.jpg"
  thumbnailUrl: "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d4/Fires_Ancient_light_installation_on_the_dome_of_St_Paul%27s_Cathedral_with_the_Firefighters_Memorial_in_the_foreground_during_the_350th_anniversary_of_the_Great_Fire_of_London.jpg/800px-thumbnail.jpg"
  caption: Fires Ancient light installation on the dome of St Paul's Cathedral with the Firefighters Memorial in the foreground during the 350th anniversary of the Great Fire of London
  credit: LondonHistoryatHome
  width: 2160
  height: 3840
- url: "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/29/Dominoes_outside_the_Royal_Exchange_in_the_City_of_London.jpg/1280px-Dominoes_outside_the_Royal_Exchange_in_the_City_of_London.jpg"
  thumbnailUrl: "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/29/Dominoes_outside_the_Royal_Exchange_in_the_City_of_London.jpg/800px-Dominoes_outside_the_Royal_Exchange_in_the_City_of_London.jpg"
  caption: Dominoes outside the Royal Exchange in the City of London
  credit: LondonHistoryatHome
  width: 3840
  height: 2160
archiveSnapshots:
- url: "https://web.archive.org/web/20260601095343/https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Fire_of_London"
  capturedAt: 2026-06-01
  label: Great Fire of London
  originalUrl: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Fire_of_London"
