 Next to be attacked along Fleet Street was the Savoy Palace , a huge , luxurious building belonging to John of Gaunt . According to the chronicler Henry Knighton it contained " such quantities of vessels and silver plate , without counting the parcel @-@ gilt and solid gold , that five carts would hardly suffice to carry them " ; official estimates placed the value of the contents at around £ 10 @,@ 000 . The interior was systematically destroyed by the rebels , who burnt the soft furnishings , smashed the precious metal work , crushed the gems , set fire to the Duke 's records and threw the remains into the Thames and the city drains . Almost nothing was stolen by the rebels , who declared themselves to be " zealots for truth and justice , not thieves and robbers " . The remains of the building were then set alight . In the evening , rebel forces gathered outside the Tower of London , from where the King watched the fires burning across the city . 
