Lessons from the great fire of London: Governance in times of crisis

Home > Opinion > Meanwhile

Lessons from the great fire of London: Governance in times of crisis

Published: 02 Sep. 2025, 00:05

Audio report: written by reporters, read by AI

Roh Jung-tae

The author is a writer and a senior fellow at the Institute for Social and Economic Research.

Just after midnight on Sunday, Sept. 2, 1666, a fire broke out at a bakery on Pudding Lane in London. Fueled by strong winds, the flames spread quickly. At the time, some 460,000 people lived crowded together in wooden houses hastily built across the city. With nearly 10 months of drought, London had become a city that could ignite like a box of matches.

An artist’s impression of the Great Fire of London. [WIKIPEDIA]

The City of London had enjoyed special autonomy since the Anglo-Saxons settled in Britain in the eighth century. But its political rivalry with the crown worsened the crisis. To contain the flames, royal troops had to be called in to demolish homes and shops and create firebreaks, despite protests from residents. Unwilling to bear such political costs, Lord Mayor Thomas Bloodworth scoffed at the threat, saying, “A woman could extinguish it with urine,” before leaving the scene. Magistrates and aldermen also refused to act decisively.

King Charles II eventually assumed command, but by then the blaze had grown uncontrollable. Over five days, it destroyed 13,200 houses, 87 parish churches, St. Paul’s Cathedral and nearly four-fifths of the city.

In its aftermath, London transformed into a modern city equipped with stricter building regulations, firefighting systems and fire insurance. The city, however, fell into default under the weight of reconstruction debt and temporarily lost its royal privileges.

Today, the lesson remains relevant. We live in an age of climate change, where the saying “this year may be the coolest summer” no longer sounds like a joke. In Korea this year alone, the Jeolla region has been battered by heavy rains and floods, while Gangneung in eastern Gangwon suffers from a drought.

To ensure that natural disasters or small mistakes do not escalate into human-made catastrophes, societies must seek wisdom, prepare carefully and strengthen governance. The tragedy of London nearly four centuries ago still speaks to the challenges of our own time.

This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.