The human story of the fire through the eyes of the individuals who lived through it.
A fire needs only three things: a spark to ignite it, and fuel and oxygen to feed it. In 1666 a ten-month drought had turned London into a tinderbox. The older parts of the city were almost entirely composed of wood-frame buildings and shanties. On September 2, London ignited. Over the next five days a gale blew without interruption and the resulting firestorm destroyed the whole city. This historical detective story combines modern knowledge of fires, forensics and arson, with moving eye-witness accounts, to produce a searing depiction of the terrible reality of the Great Fire of London and its impact on those who lived through it.
A fire needs only three things: a spark to ignite it, and fuel and oxygen to feed it. In 1666 a ten-month drought had turned London into a tinderbox. The older parts of the city were almost entirely composed of wood-frame buildings and shanties. On September 2, London ignited. Over the next five days a gale blew without interruption and the resulting firestorm destroyed the whole city. This historical detective story combines modern knowledge of fires, forensics and arson, with moving eye-witness accounts, to produce a searing depiction of the terrible reality of the Great Fire of London and its impact on those who lived through it.