Origins and traditions of Guy Fawkes Day (also known as Bonfire Night)

November 5, 9:04 AMSeattle International Travel ExaminerAnnika Hipple

Previous Next

1 comment Print Email RSS Subscribe

Subscribe

Get alerts when there is a new article from the Seattle International Travel Examiner. Read Examiner.com's terms of use.

Email Address   Include other special offers from Examiner.com Terms of Use

A bonfire burns brightly on Guy Fawkes Night celebrations in Northumberland, England
Photo by Glen Bowman. Used under Flickr Creative Commons license.

Remember, remember, the fifth of November,
Gunpowder, treason, and plot.
I see no reason why gunpowder treason
Should ever be forgot.

So runs one of the most popular of the rhymes that you might hear if you happen to be in England on this particular day of the year. It’s been more than 400 years since Guy Fawkes and his co-conspirators plotted to blow up Parliament, but the British continue to burn him in effigy every November 5 – known as Guy Fawkes Day or Bonfire Night.

Born a Protestant in the northern English city of York in 1570, Guy Fawkes converted to Catholicism in his early twenties and served in the Spanish army for more than a decade before returning to England in 1604. Ironically, he was something of an latecomer to the conspiracy that has become associated with him; the plot was already in the works when Robert Catesby, Thomas Percy, Thomas Wintour, and John Wright invited Fawkes to join them.

Fawkes’s co-conspirators were fervent Catholics whose goal was to revive their religion in England. Believing that this might be accomplished if they could only get rid of the existing government, they hatched a plot to blow up King James I, his queen and other family members, together with other government leaders, during the state opening of Parliament on November 5, 1605. To do this they rented a cellar beneath the Parliament building and filled it with barrels of gunpowder.

As the day of action approached, the group of conspirators grew to thirteen, and one of them apparently wrote an anonymous letter alerting one of the Catholic lords to stay away from Parliament on opening day. No conclusive evidence has ever established authorship of the letter, and some historians argue that the plot was already known to authorities beforehand, but the outcome in any case was the same. The plot was discovered and Fawkes, who had been designated to check and eventually light the barrels of gunpowder, was apprehended. Under torture he revealed the names of his co-conspirators. Some were killed while resisting arrest; the remainder were hanged, drawn, and quartered as traitors. By January 1606 all thirteen, including Fawkes, were dead and November 5 was proclaimed a day of celebration.

More than four centuries later, the foiling of the plot and the deliverance of the King are still celebrated throughout England and even in some former British colonies such as New Zealand. The tradition involves creating dummies known as "Guys" to be burned in effigy on Bonfire Night. In the days preceding the event, children roam the streets with the dummies, asking for “a penny for the Guy.” The money is used to buy fireworks for the celebration.

On Guy Fawkes Night, the dummies are placed on bonfires and burned, while fireworks explode overhead and guests feast on sausages, baked potatoes, and other bonfire foods. In addition to private parties, there are huge community bonfires that attract thousands of people. Having the best festivities is a matter of tremendous pride for some communities, including the town of Lewes in Sussex, whose Bonfire Night celebrations are the largest and most famous in England.

For more information: Time magazine: "A Brief History of Guy Fawkes Day." For more historical detail, see "Guy Fawkes: A Biography" at Britannia.com

Photo by Glen Bowman used under a Flickr Creative Commons license.