ABSTRACT
For London's buildings and monuments, the Great Fire of 1666 was a far worse calamity than the Civil War. Damage was extensive, though remarkably few lives were lost. More statues were burned than people. The figures of kings at the Royal Exchange were all destroyed, though the founder's statue survived. Pepys briefly described the scene: 'The Exchange a sad sight, nothing standing there of all the statues or pillars but Sir Tho. Gresham's picture in the corner'.1 The Exchange, the commercial hub of the City, was quickly rebuilt to a new classical design by Edward Jerman in 1667-69. As before, statues of the kings of England were to stand in niches around the courtyard. And, also as before, this part of the project was not achieved so swiftly, though the statue of Sir Thomas Gresham which had survived the fire was reinstated without delay.
