Saturday 3 September 2011

Anniversary of the Great Fire of London

13,500 houses,
87 parish churches,
44 Company Halls,
the Royal Exchange,
the Custom House,
St. Paul's Cathedral,
the Bridewell Palace and other City prisons,
the General Letter Office
Ludgate, Newgate, and Aldersgate.

Eight lives (officially)

Hundreds or even thousands unofficially: those burned to ashes (the poor) those beaten to death (Dutch, French, Catholic), the poor fool who pleaded guilty to starting the fire, those who starved, those who, homeless, froze to death.

And the suspicion of a religious minority who, it was claimed, didn't fit in; recognised a different government; put their religion first and their country second. As The Monument put it:

"the City of London was burnt and consumed with fire by the treachery and malice of the Papists in September in the year of Our Lord 1666".

And as Pope riposted:

"Where London's column pointing at the skies, Like a tall bully, lifts the head, and lies."

Figures from Wikipedia

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