The History of November 5th Remember, Remember The History of November 5th

Guy Fawkes Night Guy Fawkes Day Bonfire Night Fireworks Night Known as… Guy Fawkes Night Guy Fawkes Day Bonfire Night Fireworks Night

Celebrated with… Fireworks

Celebrated with… Sparklers

Celebrated with… Bonfires

Celebrated with… Toffee Apples And treacle toffee

Celebrated with… Treacle Toffee And treacle toffee

Celebrated with… Parkin Cake

Celebrated with… Toasted Marshmallows

What’s the story behind Guy Fawkes Night? Why do we have bonfires and fireworks and parties on November 5th? What was the Gunpowder Plot? How was Guy Fawkes involved?

The Traditional Rhyme Remember, remember the Fifth of November, The Gunpowder Treason and Plot, I know of no reason why Gunpowder Treason should ever be forgot. This traditional rhyme, which dates back to the 17th Century, summarises what happened… at least as far as the country’s majority saw it!

The Traditional Rhyme Guy Fawkes, Guy Fawkes, t'was his intent to blow up King and Parliament. Three-score barrels of powder below to prove old England's overthrow; By God's providence he was catch'd with a dark lantern and burning match. Holloa boys, holloa boys, let the bells ring. Holloa boys, holloa boys, God save the King!

The Gunpowder Plot (1605) Blow up the Houses of Parliament while the King and Parliament were there! (at the State Opening of Parliament)

The Plotters Rich, educated men Robert Catesby was the leader, and Guy Fawkes only a minor member of the group…

The Plotters Guy Fawkes …Unfortunately for Guy, he was the one caught red-handed with 36 barrels of gunpowder in the cellar of the Houses of Parliament. (He was the team’s explosives expert, having served in the Spanish army in the Netherlands.)

Their Reason Political, religious conflict Successive English rulers – Henry VIII

Their Reason Political, religious conflict Queen Elizabeth I

Their Reason Political, religious conflict and King James I, had made it increasingly hard for Catholics to practice their faith. By killing King James and Parliament, the Catholic plotters hoped to put Jame’s 9 year old daughter Elizabeth on the throne as a Catholic monarch.

Did the plot succeed? Almost – they managed to rent a cellar/undercroft (photo above) that was more or less under the House of Lords and then move 36 barrels of gunpowder into it over a period of a few months.

Did the plot succeed? However, on 26 Oct 1605, an anonymous letter was sent to a Catholic Lord (Lord Monteagle), warning him not to attend parliament for his own safety. On 1 Nov, the King was shown the letter and guards began searching the houses of parliament, eventually finding Guy Fawkes and the barrels of gunpowder in the wee hours of 5 Nov.

Did the plot succeed? Within a few months, all the plotters had been put to death. (Arrest, interrogation, torture, trial, grisly executions… all those terrifying 17th century consequences of high treason.)

Since then… Before the State opening of Parliament, the cellars of the Lords and Commons are searched by the Yeoman of the Guard. Today officers from the metropolitan police join them.

Why do we still celebrate it today? 5 Nov had to be celebrated (an Act of Parliament from 1606-1859) Bonfires and fireworks were part of the earliest traditions Today it’s an excuse for a party From 1606 until 1859, an Act of Parliament made 5 Nov a Day of Thanksgiving, because England’s King and parliament had been saved. It was celebrated with bonfires and church services from the very first, and fireworks were involved in some of the earliest celebrations. (Traditionally, in the weeks running up to the 5th, children made "guys"—effigies supposedly of Fawkes—usually made from old clothes stuffed with newspaper, and fitted with a grotesque mask, to be burnt on the 5 November bonfire. These guys were exhibited in the street to collect money for fireworks, although this custom has become less common.The word guy thus came in the 19th century to mean an oddly dressed person, and hence in the 20th and 21st centuries to mean any male person. - Wikipedia)

For Discussion What does your country celebrate with fireworks? What do you think of Guy Fawkes? Do you admire, pity and/or disapprove of him? Is there a cause or belief you consider worth dying for? How has the world changed since the Gunpowder Plot? How has it not changed? Pick one or two questions that might be suitable for your group.

What if the plot had succeeded? We would have a different UK… We might not have the King James Bible – a book that had a deep impact on English language and culture Alternately, you could pick up on the KJB instead: We would have a different England/UK (impossible to predict exactly how things would have turned out, but certainly the course of history would have changed), but also, one tangible thing we wouldn’t have had, was the King James bible, which King James I commissioned. It was one of the first English translations of the Bible and widely used for 300 years. It has been described as “one of the most important books in English culture and a driving force in the shaping of the English-speaking world.”

Do you recognise these expressions? The writing is on the wall The fly in the ointment The salt of the earth Scapegoat Long suffering The meanings and origins can be discussed/explained at tables. Or you can print out the expressions and definitions as a matching exercise. They are from the King James Bible