* The Great Fire of London (1666): Just a year after the Great Plague, London was hit by another major disaster. The Great Fire started in a bakery and quickly spread through the city's narrow streets and wooden buildings. The fire burned for four days and destroyed over 13,000 homes, churches, and other buildings.
Jules Mazarin, who grew up in Rome, showed diplomatic talents very early on. After a stay in Spain, he became apostolic nuncio (diplomatic agent, ambassador of the Holy See to the States) in Milan, attached to the Holy See. The lifting of the siege of Casale in 1630 (conflict forming part of the Thi