Author: Darrel Pratt

Winchester was named Capital of England under Alfred the Great, and even Northampton was named Capital during the reign of the Danes. Where was England’s first capital? When the 7 Anglo-Saxon kingdoms became united under one king in the 9th century, the first capital of England was not London (albeit the largest city in the […]

Only a small number of people died but around 13,000 houses and 87 churches were burnt down, including the original St Paul’s Cathedral. Much of the city was redesigned by Sir Christopher Wren, who rebuilt St Paul’s with a dome instead of a steeple. What impact did the Great Fire of London have? What happened […]

As the fire was spreading so quickly most Londoners concentrated on escaping rather than fighting the fire. They rescued as many of their belongings as they could carry and fled. Thomas Farriner and his family had to climb out of an upstairs window and onto their neighbour’s roof to escape the fire in their bakery. […]

The oldest, still inhabited house in the UK was built in the 1100s, a thousand years ago. Houses have been built and still stand from then until today, through the centuries. That’s why our cities look old. It’s because many cities in the UK are considerably older than cities in the US. Why are there […]

Many houses, taverns and workshops were built of wood and plaster in Tudor style. Most churches and civic buildings were of stone, originally constructed during the medieval period. What were 17th century houses made of? Poor People’s Homes in the 17th Century In the Middle Ages, ordinary people’s homes were usually made of wood. However […]

1674-1715. In the mid-1670s, when the Proceedings began to be published, the population of the capital was approximately 500,000. Fourteen years later, Gregory King, Britain’s first great demographer, estimated it at 527,000. How many people lived in London in the 17th century? About 350,000 people lived in London in the 1660s, making it one of […]