The London that grew up after the Great Fire was very different from the city it replaced. The urgent need to rebuild gave an impetus to the city's expansion. New institutions, population shifts and, of course, the physical regeneration of the capital all helped to change its character. In many important ways, the London that rose from the ashes formed the basis of the modern city we see today.

London rebuilt

For years, architects had been hankering to redesign London on a more planned, elegant model. They now had their chance. Wholesale redesign proved impossible because property owners insisted on keeping the sites of their vanished buildings, but some streets were widened and proportions changed, and the new buildings were made of brick or stone rather than wood. Crucially, planning regulations were drawn up to ensure uniformity of building style and size: two storeys on lanes and by-streets, three storeys on larger streets and the river front, four storeys on 'streets of note'.

The Guildhall and other civic buildings were swiftly rebuilt, and Christopher Wren designed 51 new churches for the City, incorporating classical ideas of proportion and symmetry. He also built a new St Paul's cathedral, which was to be the largest in Europe. Its great dome was influenced both by classicism and by his interest in astronomy: he intended it to be used as an observatory. St Paul's dominated the capital's skyline for centuries and continues to be a focal point of riverside London.

For the full story of Christopher Wren's plans for St Paul's cathedral and the rest of London, see the interview with Professor Lisa Jardine.

An expanding city

With 9,000 homes to be rebuilt, London had a labour shortage. The muscle was supplied by migrant workers who came from other parts of Britain and from abroad. Some settled in the City or in the cheaper areas to the east – Spitalfields and Tower Hamlets. Others went to suburbs that were growing up to the west of the City, such as Seven Dials and Soho.

Areas became known for certain crafts or trades, as furniture-makers, clock- makers, tailors and leather-workers supplied the market with their goods. In the 1680s, French Huguenots, fleeing religious persecution, brought with them skills ranging from silver-working to millinery. London's population rose steadily while that of other European cities fell, until, by 1700, it was the largest city in northern Europe. And it was beginning to develop along lines of demarcation that still persist – the City for business, the West End for wealthy homes and shops and the East End for the hard-up.

Fire insurance and fire brigades

The Great Fire cost London an estimated £10 million, at a time when the City's annual income was just £12,000. Not surprisingly, this expense focused minds on the idea of insuring against fire.

By the end of the 17th century, three London societies were actively engaged in the business – the Fire Office (later known as the Phoenix Fire Office, established in 1680), the Friendly Society (established in 1683) and the Hand-in-Hand Office. The Hand-in-Hand was originally formed in Tom's Coffee House in London in 1696 with the clumsy name of the 'Amicable Contributionship for the Insurance of Houses against Fire'. The name changed soon after the company adopted an emblem of two hands joined beneath a crown. It still exists as part of the CGNU insurance conglomerate.

The Hand-in-Hand, like other private fire insurance companies, operated its own fire brigade. The most suitable men for this work were the Thames watermen – strong, reliable, used to danger and easy to locate when needed. Clad in the distinctive livery of their companies, they soon became familiar figures at fires in London. It was the practice for the company 'claiming' the fire to pay for the services of brigades from other fire offices and companies who arrived to help.

In those days, very few streets had names, and the houses and other buildings in them were neither named nor numbered. So that their fire brigade could identify properties 'in their care', it was the practice of each insurance company to mark buildings with a distinctive emblem, or 'fire mark' – usually a colourful lead plaque nailed high up on the front of the property. These can still be seen on some buildings in London today, but, as they are increasingly collectible, they are gradually disappearing.

The private fire brigades lasted for a surprisingly long time. It wasn't until exactly two centuries after the Great Fire that the publicly owned Metropolitan (London) Fire Brigade was formed.

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Map showing destruction of city and plan for rebuilding
(AKG Photo)

Enlarge image

Rescuing belongings as the fire blazes
(Mary Evans Picture Library)