What London Smelled Like Before the Great Fire of 1666

Surviving accounts describe a pungent, layered olfactory landscape.

Major Odor Sources

• Sewage & Waste: Open gutters, cesspits, chamber pots emptied into streets; no sewer system.
• Coal & Wood Smoke: Domestic hearths, breweries, lime kilns, smithies—ubiquitous soot and sulfur.
• Animals: Horses (transport), cattle/sheep driven to market, pigs scavenging; manure and slaughterhouse offal.
• Tanneries: Urine, lime, bark, decaying hides—among the foulest trades, clustered along the Fleet.
• Industry: Brewing (fermenting grain), wool fulling (urine/alkali), soap boiling (tallow).
• Markets: Fish (Billingsgate), meat (Newgate), herbs, spices—fresh and rotting.
• Poor Hygiene: Infrequent bathing, lice, communal privies.
• Apothecaries: Herbal, mineral, animal preparations—distinctive medicinal aromas.

Spatial & Temporal Variation

Riverside wards worse at low tide; wealthier parishes slightly better. Summer intensified putrefaction; winter trapped smoke.

After the Fire

Rebuilding brought wider streets, brick construction, and early sewer improvements (though modern sewers came 19th c.). The fire literally cleared the air.