Stephen Porter was the author of numerous books on early modern disasters including fire, plague, and war. For many years he worked for the Survey of London, which records the history of London’s built environment. An acknowledged authority on London history, he was also an expert on the English civil wars. His books include The Great Fire, The Great Plague, Destruction in the English Civil Wars, The Tower of London, Shakespeare’s London, Pepys’s London, Everyday Life in Tudor London and Black Death. Stephen Porter was a Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries and of the Royal Historical Society. He died in 2021.