A Brief History
On November 30, 1936, the Crystal Palace in London, England was destroyed by a fire. The huge iron, wood, and mostly glass building had been built for the Great Exposition of 1,851 and stretched 1851 feet long with an interior height of 128 feet. Erected in Hyde Park, after the Exposition the entire structure was dismantled and rebuilt in South London.
Digging Deeper
Some other significant structures destroyed by fire include:
The Great Library at Alexandria, burned in 48 BC when Julius Caesar burned a fleet in the harbor that spread to the iconic library.
The White House and US Capitol were burned by the British in 1814, both rebuilt.
The German Reichstag in Berlin was burned by political arson in 1933.
The Notre Dame Cathedral of Paris, burned in 2019, had stood for over eight centuries and will be rebuilt.
Question for students (and subscribers): What other infamous fires would you include on this list? Please let us know in the comments section below this article.
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Historical Evidence
For more information, please see…
Beaver, Patrick. The Crystal Palace: A Portrait of Victorian Enterprise. Phillimore & Co Ltd, 1986.
Queen, Layla. Notre Dame de Paris Fire Predicted by Victor Hugo. Independently published, 2019.
The featured image in this article, a photograph of The Crystal Palace on fire on the night of 30 November 1936, is in the public domain because it is one of the following:
- A photograph, which has never previously been made available to the public (e.g. by publication or display at an exhibition) and which was taken more than 70 years ago (before 1 January 1953); or
- A photograph, which was made available to the public (e.g. by publication or display at an exhibition) more than 70 years ago (before 1 January 1953); or
- An artistic work other than a photograph (e.g. a painting), or a literary work, which was made available to the public (e.g. by publication or display at an exhibition) more than 70 years ago (before 1 January 1953).
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