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Great Fire of London

A History from Beginning to End

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Great Fire of London

By: Hourly History
Narrated by: Matthew J. Chandler-Smith
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About this listen

Discover the devastating history of the Great Fire of London...
In the summer of 1666, London was one of the largest cities in Europe, with close to half a million people living in its narrow, congested streets. Many of these people lived in houses packed closely together, lacking even basic facilities such as clean water and sewage disposal. The previous year, these unsanitary conditions had contributed to the worst outbreak of plague since the Black Death in 1348. Around 15% of the city’s population died as the deadly disease spread unchecked for almost twelve months. Finally, by the summer of 1666, the threat of plague seemed to be receding, and London slowly began to return to normal. But then, the city was threatened by another deadly hazard: fire.

London was a tinderbox waiting to ignite. Many of the city’s wooden buildings were sealed with flammable pitch, their upper stories jutting out and nearly meeting across the streets. An unusually hot and dry summer had drained the city’s water supplies, and without an organized firefighting force, its citizens were left to fend for themselves. The stage was set for catastrophe, and in the early hours of Sunday, September 2, 1666, the spark was struck. A seemingly inconsequential fire ignited in a baker’s shop on Pudding Lane. Unchecked and underestimated, it would grow to become one of the most devastating disasters London had ever faced.

Discover a plethora of topics such as

  • London: A City at Risk
  • September 2: Pudding Lane
  • September 3: The Fire Spreads
  • September 4: A Change of Wind
  • September 5 & 6: The Fire Dies Down
  • Rebuilding
  • And much more!

So if you want a concise and informative book on the Great Fire of London, simply scroll up and click the "Buy now" button for instant access!

©2023 Hourly History (P)2023 Hourly History
17th Century Europe Great Britain Modern England
All stars
Most relevant
Again and again the narrator mispronounced the names of London boroughs…. Terrible!! Getting he basics wrong is inexcusable

Narrator appalling….

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Being a Brit, I was cringing and grimacing after a few minutes of listening to the drawling American accent and the tragic mispronunciation of words and place names. To read, the book would be rated much better. What a terrible choice of narrator for a story about the capital of England!

Horrendous American Narration

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