The history of the Fire Service ...
                                         ... how it all began
 
The earliest firefighters operated in Roman Britain and were known as the ‘Corps of Vigiles’ (Vigiles meaning Watchmen) but for many centuries after the Romans fire fighting was disorganised and relied on primitive equipment such as leather buckets to carry water and hooks to pull away parts of the burning building.

One of the first recorded fire prevention measures was taken by William the Conqueror, who ordered that all fires be extinguished or contained at sunset, by placing a metal cover over the fire. This was called a ‘couvre feu’ (from where the modern day word ‘curfew’ originates) and was signalled by the ringing of a bell in the evening. This became known as the ‘curfew bell’. If there was a fire or any other emergency, church bells would be rung backwards to alert people. This method of calling volunteer firefighters existed into the 20th century in certain rural areas.



‘The Great Fire of London’ happened in 1666. Starting in Pudding Lane, a very narrow street leading down to the Thames, the fire quickly spread to riverside warehouses where Tallow, Oil, Spirits and Hemp were stored and to riverside quays where Hay, Timber and Coal lay heaped. Timber framed buildings on London Bridge and in the narrow streets beyond were soon alight, forcing many people to escape in boats on the River Thames. There was very little equipment to fight the fire, mainly a few inefficient fire pumps, leather buckets and metal hooks with little water available except from the river. The fire was finally contained after four days by pulling down buildings in its path to form firebreaks.

The total loss was estimated at over £10 million, a colossal sum for those times and many small merchants were ruined. Over thirteen thousand (13,000) small houses were destroyed and one hundred thousand (100,000) people were made homeless. 84 churches including St. Paul's Cathedral and most public buildings were burned to the ground. Records show that only six people were killed but it is most likely that many more died. No one ever officially found the cause of the fire.



It took another 14 years after the Great Fire of London for organised fire services to start forming. 1680 saw the opening of the first ‘Fire Insurance Offices’ recruiting ‘Insurance Company Brigades’. The idea was that people would pay an insurance company for ‘fire cover’ and display the relevant companies badge on the outside of their building. Should the building then catch fire the only company who would attempt to tackle the fire would be the one who owns the badge. If you did not display a badge, or the badge belonged to a different insurance company your building would be left to burn.

In 1833 the Insurance Company Brigades were joined together to form the ‘London Fire Engine Establishment’ under James Braidwood as Superintendent.

In the meantime, municipal brigades had begun to form in a few towns including both Manchester and Edinburgh in 1824, but the voluntary principal continued to prevail.



It was not until 1866 that public authorities were given the duty of extinguishing fires by law. The ‘Metropolitan Fire Brigades Act of 1865’ saw the establishment of the ‘London Fire Brigade’ and the take over of the London Fire Engine Establishment. The newly appointed Chief Fire Officer, Captain Massey Shaw, introduced brass helmets and a uniform for all men. As new brigades formed, they adopted the same design for the brass helmet that was used right up until the 1930’s when it was replaced by an insulated cork helmet, to reduce the risk of electrocution.

Statutory fire protection was only initially given to London but this did not prevent the formation of many voluntary brigades throughout the 19th century. Also local authorities were authorised to pay for their Fire Brigades out of the rates and a number took advantage of this power. It was not until the ‘Fire Brigades Act of 1938’ that everybody in the country became entitled to the services of a Fire Brigade without charge. This act required local authorities to provide a firefighting organisation and saw the creation of Fire Authorities throughout the United Kingdom, some of which still exist today.