The Great Fire of London started in the very early hours of September 2, 1666. In four days it destroyed more than three-quarters of the old city, where most of the houses were wooden and close together. One hundred thousand people became homeless, but only a few lost their lives.
伦敦大火始于1666年9月2日凌晨。四天之内，摧毁了这座古城的四分之三，那里的大多数房屋都是木制的，而且挨得很近。10万人无家可归，不过只有少数人丧生。
The fire started on Sunday morning in the house of the King's baker in Pudding Lane. The baker, with his wife and family, was able to get out through a window in the roof. A strong wind blew the fire from the bakery into a small hotel next door. Then it spread quickly into Thames Street. That was the beginning.
火灾发生于周日上午布丁巷的国王面包师的房子。面包师、他的妻子以及家人从屋顶的窗户逃生。一阵强风把面包房的火吹进了隔壁的一家小旅馆，然后迅速蔓延至泰晤士街。这就是火灾的开始阶段。
By eight o'clock three hundred houses were on fire. On Monday nearly a kilometer of the city was burning along the River Thames. Tuesday was the worst day. The fire destroyed many well-known buildings, old St. Paul's and the Guildhall among them.
到上午8点，有三百所房子着火。周一，泰晤士河沿岸近一公里的城市被毁。周二是最糟糕的一天，大火摧毁了许多著名建筑，包括老圣保罗教堂和市政厅。
Samuel Pepys, the famous writer, wrote about the fire. People threw their things into the river. Many poor people stayed in their houses until the last moment. Birds fell out of the air because of the heat.
著名作家塞缪尔·佩皮斯描述过这场火灾。人们把东西扔进河里，许多穷人一直呆在家里直到最后一刻。由于空气炎热，鸟儿从空中掉了下来。
The fire stopped only when the King finally ordered people to destroy hundreds of buildings in the path of the fire. With nothing left to burn, the fire became weak and finally died out.
直到国王最终命令人们摧毁火灾路线上的数百栋建筑时，大火才停止。没有什么东西可烧了，火势减弱，最后熄灭了。
After the fire, Wren, the architect, wanted a city with wider streets and fine new houses of stone. In fact, the streets are still narrow, but he did build more than fifty churches, among them new St. Paul's.
大火过后，建筑师雷恩想让城市街道更宽，有更多的新的石头房子。不过，街道依然狭窄，但他真的建造了50多座教堂，包括新的圣保罗教堂。
The fire caused great pain and loss, but after it London was a better place: a city for the future and not just of the past.
大火造成了巨大的痛苦和损失，但之后伦敦变得更好了：一座未来的城市，而不仅仅是过去的城市。
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