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How do we know about the Great Fire of London?

In this lesson, we will learn about Samuel Pepys and John Evelyn who chronicled the events of the Great Fire of London in their diaries.

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How do we know about the Great Fire of London?

In this lesson, we will learn about Samuel Pepys and John Evelyn who chronicled the events of the Great Fire of London in their diaries.

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Lesson details

Key learning points

  1. To show in discussion, an understanding of what an 'eyewitness' is.
  2. To recognise aspects of the fire that eyewitnesses saw.
  3. To know that Samuel Pepys saw the fire and that he wrote about it in his diary.
  4. To examine Samuel Pepys' diary entries on the Great Fire of London.

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This content is made available by Oak National Academy Limited and its partners and licensed under Oak’s terms & conditions (Collection 1), except where otherwise stated.

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Starter quiz

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5 Questions

Q1.
On which date did the Great Fire of London begin?
Correct answer: September 2nd, 1666
September 3rd, 1666
Q2.
Who made a record in his diary of the events of the Great Fire of London?
Christopher Wren
King Charles II
Correct answer: Samuel Pepys
Q3.
Which river did Londoners cross in order to escape the fire?
River Fleet
River Severn
Correct answer: River Thames
Q4.
What was initially used in order to pull down burning houses?
Correct answer: Fire hooks
Fire squirts
Gunpowder
Q5.
How many houses were destroyed during the Great Fire of London?
1,320
Correct answer: 13,200
132
132,000

Exit quiz

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5 Questions

Q1.
Historical sources tell us about history. True or false?
False
Correct answer: True
Q2.
Are primary sources a first hand or second hand account of an event in the past?
Correct answer: First hand
Second hand
Q3.
Which of these are considered primary sources? Tick two.
Correct answer: Diaries
Documentaries
Research websites
Correct answer: Tools
Q4.
Which of these are considered to be secondary sources? Tick two.
Clothes
Correct answer: Essays
Paintings
Correct answer: Textbooks
Q5.
How did Samuel Pepys prevent others from reading his diary?
He kept his diary locked in a safe.
Correct answer: He wrote his diary using a secret code, a shortened version of words.
He wrote his diary using invisible ink.

Lesson appears in

UnitHistory / The Great Fire of London

History

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