The Great Fire of London roared through central London in September 1666, gutting the medieval city in four days. The unrestrained flames destroyed more than 13,000 homes, 87 parish churches, St. Paul’s Cathedral, and many other buildings across 450 acres, leaving 70,000 people homeless. In 1986, members of the Worshipful Company of Bakers gathered along Pudding Lane and formally apologized for the actions of Thomas Farriner (also spelled Faryner or Farynor), the king’s baker, who is thought to have accidentally started the Great Fire there, 320 years before.
Sorry, Robert, the baker did it:
- At the ceremony, a plaque was unveiled on the site of Farriner’s former bakery. Allen Davis, the lord mayor of London at the time, said: "It's never too late to apologize."
- It is believed that Farriner failed to douse his oven properly before going to bed. The widower escaped the flames along with his three children, but their housemaid perished.
- A French watchmaker named Robert Hubert claimed that he caused the fire, and was hanged. It was later determined that Hubert had arrived in London two days after the fire began.