The "London Gazette" was first published as the "Oxford Gazette" on 7 November 1665. Charles II and the Royal Court had moved to Oxford to escape the Great Plague of London, and courtiers were unwilling to touch, let alone read, London newspapers for fear of becoming ill. When the King returned to London after the end of the plague the "Gazette" moved too. The first issue of the "London Gazette" (labelled No. 24) was published on 5 February 1666. The "Gazette" was not a newspaper in the modern sense: it was sent in manuscript by post to subscribers. It was not printed for sale to the general public.