How many verified deaths were recorded in the Great Fire of London?

The Great Fire of London was a major conflagration that swept through the central parts of the English city of London from Sunday, 2 September to Wednesday, 5 September 1666. The fire gutted the medieval City of London inside the old Roman city wall. It threatened but did not reach the aristocratic district of Westminster, Charles II's Palace of Whitehall, and most of the suburban slums. It consumed 13,200 houses, 87 parish churches, St Paul's Cathedral, and most of the buildings of the City authorities. It is estimated to have destroyed the homes of 70,000 of the City's 80,000 inhabitants.

The death toll is unknown but traditionally thought to have been small, as only six verified deaths were recorded. This reasoning has recently been challenged on the grounds that the deaths of poor and middle-class people were not recorded, while the heat of the fire may have cremated many victims, leaving no recognisable remains. A melted piece of pottery on display at the Museum of London found by archaeologists in Pudding Lane, where the fire started, shows that the temperature reached 1250 °C.

The Great Fire started at the bakery of Thomas Farriner (or Farynor) on Pudding Lane shortly after midnight on Sunday, 2 September and spread rapidly west across the City of London.

More Info: en.wikipedia.org

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8 Comments

Jim Laughner

Larry Kuykendall, That was not a foolish question. Look at any information source and you'll see that the exact number of deaths is unknown but whoever was recording statistics was able to CONFIRM. There were likely many more but it can't be proven. The fire was hot enough to melt pottery so it was also hot enough to cremate the remains of people who were killed but those deaths, (if they actually happened), could not be confirmed and verified. The question is: "How many verified deaths were recorded in the Great Fire of London? The answer is factually accurate although the total death toll may have been higher, the question didn't ask ow many deaths were estimated, (which doesn't have an answer and would therefore be a foolish question). It asked how many were verified, and since that answer is, was and always will be 6 the question is not foolish.

Kate Foley

Larry Kuykendall, ......It did not ask how many died...but how many verified deaths were recorded, so it is not a foolish question at all.

Jim Laughner

Maryann Stokes, It was called the "Great Fire" because it destroyed more than 13,000 homes and other buildings. That's more than a minor incident. Do you get that many homes / buildings destroyed by fire every month? The fire burned for 4 days. If that doesn't qualify as a "great fire" I'd like to know your definition of "great"!

Oystein Wergeland

It led to the establishment of public fire brigades in all of Great Britain.

Jeff Leonard

What a croc! 70.000 of 80.000 residents homes destroyed and only 6 verified deaths … obviously all the sensis people died too!

Fred Keogh

Oystein Wergeland, I'm sorry but it didn't. It did lead to the establishment of fire companies who, for a price, would be on call to fight a fire, if you had paid to join their company. It was an insurance system with the insured being identified by plaques on the walls of their houses. No plaque? No fire put out! There are verified reports of next door properties being allowed to burn down as the owners had not paid insurance money.

Grant McIntosh

Oystein Wergeland, No it didn't. James Braidwood founded the world's first municipal fire service in Edinburgh after the Great Fire of Edinburgh in 1824 destroyed much of the city's Old Town. Up until then, fire fighting was either provided by voluntary bodies, parish authorities or insurance companies.