You are now standing very close to the spot where the Great Fire of Buckingham started on March 15th 1725. The plaque in the pavement was laid as part of the 300th anniversary commemoration of the fire (Image 1).
The fire was started by accident. There was an inn here, called the Unicorn. It was a fine, dry, windy day. In the early evening, 2 lads and a chambermaid were playing in the yard behind the inn, trying to make a fire. Perhaps they were cold! They got hold of some burning embers, and a heap of dried grass caught alight. Flames leapt up, and quickly spread to the building (Image 2). Before they knew it, the whole of the inn was ablaze. In the strong wind which was blowing from the north east, sparks flew up to the rooftops, and fires started in more buildings.
Shouts of ‘Fire! Fire’ began to echo around the streets. There was panic as people rushed to the river, and to water pumps to fill buckets. Desperately, neighbours and passers–by formed human chains to pass buckets of water to the site of the fire to try and douse the fire. Others grabbed long poles to pull the thatch down from the roofs to try and create fire breaks. But it was a losing battle. The wooden buildings quickly caught alight, and burning thatch was carried on the strong wind to start new fires in different parts of the town. The outbuildings, filled with fodder and bedding, blazed up quickly when sparks fell on them, and spread the flames further.