The girls were transported back to the streets of London in 1666 to re-enact the moments leading up to The Great Fire. Dressed in period costumes, complete with wigs for the gentry, the girls shopped in the busy, narrow streets and discovered just how close together the houses were back then, close enough to shake hands with your neighbour across the street!
We saw inside Thomas Farriner’s royal bakery and watched how a few grains of flour dust ignited to set the house, then the street, and then a whole area of London, ablaze. We learnt how the fire service was completely made from volunteers back then, and the girls helped pull down houses to create fire breaks. As the wind finally eased and the fire subsided, we could see the ruins left behind as we huddled in tent city right next to complete strangers and entire families.
The workshop was absolutely fantastic and really helped the girls get a sense of London back then, understanding how and why the fire spread so quickly and culminated in the rebuilding of London, learning lessons from the fire.
Categories: Girls' Prep School
