KS1 The famous ‘Great Fire of London’ started on Sunday 2nd September 1666 in a bakers shop. The shop was on ‘Pudding Lane’ and belonged to Thomay Faynor, someone who baked for the King. Why do you think the street was called ‘Pudding Lane’? The baker forgot to put out the fire he used to bake bread. Some fire wood was set alight and the fire began. The buildings in London at the time were made of wood and had thatched roofs. The fire spread very quickly. Why did the fire spread so quickly? The buildings were also very close together, so the fire spread quickly from one street to another. The very strong wind blowing also helped the fire to spread quickly across the city of London. People tried to escape in boats. People tried to put the fire out with buckets of water. What would we use today to put a fire out?

Who would help us? The fire destroyed many buildings in London. They were later rebuild using bricks instead of wood. Why was brick used instead of wood? Samuel Pepys kept a diary of what he saw during the fire. He watched the fire from across the River Thames. The fire continued burning for four days. Luckily, only four people were reported to have died. Why do you think the fire carried on burning for four days? After the fire a fire service was set up in London to make sure that it did not happen again. A statue was made to remember the Great Fire of London. It still stands in London today. Task 1:

Can you order the events of the Great Fire of London? Task 2:

Imagine you are Samuel Pepys. What can you:

See Smell

Hear

And how do you feel? Task 3:

Write a report explaining all about the Great Fire of London.