King Charles II and his brother, James, Duke of York, made an important contribution to the fire-fighting effort. The King himself helped out with buckets of water and circled the fire on horseback, offering money to persuade people to help. The Duke was put in charge of the City and organised bands of men as fire-fighters and to keep the peace. He also saved several foreigners from the angry mobs searching for arsonists.
The Lord Mayors of London did not come out of the disaster with such good reputations. Sir Thomas Bludworth, Mayor at the time, ‘cried like a fainting woman’ in the face of the flames, and his successor, Sir William Bolton, embezzled money from the fire relief funds. The work of other officials, such as the Fire Court judge, Sir Matthew Hale, was vital to the rebuilding work after the fire.