I was just realizing that today is Bonfire Night in England. If I was still there we would have been gathering wood for the past few weeks so that it would be dry for tonight when we would light a fire and set off fireworks and have sparklers and toast marshmallows.

Bonfire Night is a purely British celebration. It’s also called Guy Fawkes day and celebrates the failure of an attempt to assassinate a king by a group of whom Guy Fawkes was a member. They had rented a warehouse underneath the Palace of Westminster and were planning on using a massive amount of gunpowder to blow up King James I on the 5th of November 1605. When Guy was caught by guards and arrested.

Given the way this was spoken of in school growing up. I tend to imagine Guy standing around by the aforementioned room, whistling, when guards come up and go, “Well, well, what have we got going on here there?” and Guy turns and looks and in a infinitely smart maneuver says, “Well, it’s not a bunch of gunpowder to blow up the king, is it? That would be very silly.”

In truth Guy Fawkes was a military trained explosives expert recruited by Roman Catholic conspirators who were lead by Robert Catesby. They were hoping to remove James I so his daughter Elizabeth who was Catholic could inherit the throne. The conspirators had been amassing supplies for several months and had a large supply of gunpowder in the storage warehouse near the House or Lords. Fawkes was discovered on November 5th and taken to the Tower of London.

He and the rest of the conspirators who were summarily caught were sentenced to be hung, drawn and quartered, and then later they were burned on a bonfire.

So, we in England would make scarecrows called Guys before the anniversary of Bonfire Night each year, often youths would make these scarecrows and go around doing “Penny for the Guy” to passersby to raise money to buy fireworks. Then on Bonfire Night itself the scarecrows would be burned on the fire and fireworks lit to celebrate.

Those who have watched V for Vendetta recently may remember this rhyme:

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

We would say this rhyme in school and at Bonfire parties, often it would stop after the first few lines, but every once in a while we would say the whole thing.

Some information from this post was verified by checking Wikipedia. It’s an interesting tale, and I often have to explain it to my husband, and have also had to explain it to friends growing up once we moved over here, because they would hear tales of this “barbaric holiday” and want clarification. “No, we really did celebrate a guy being executed.”