Nov 5, 2005
Gunpowder, Treason, and Plot
Remember, remember the fifth of November,
Gunpowder, treason and plot,
I see no reason why gunpowder treason
Should ever be forgot.
I cannot permit the four hundredth anniversary of the Catholic conspiracy to blow up the Houses of Parliament and kill King James I and his ministers to pass without recognition.
Growing up just outside London, I well remember Guy Fawkes Day and the perennial ritual of burning stuffed effigies (of Guy Fawkes) on bonfires and firework displays. Those were the days when kids could buy large and potentially dangerous fireworks. They would take to the streets displaying their effigies to solicit funds (“A penny for the guy”) to pay for their fireworks. I remember when an “old” (pre-decimalization) penny would buy you a sparkler or a banger, tuppence (two pennies) would buy you a Jumping Jack, and a shilling would buy you a couple of Roman candles. No more. Inflation has eaten away at the purchasing power of the currency. And government laws now prohibit the purchase of “adult fireworks” by anyone under eighteen. Although the British state does not prohibit privately organized firework parties, the authorities encourage people to gather in carefully monitored areas for public displays at taxpayer’s expense.
I guess the discovery of the conspiracy under Robert Catesbury and twelve others (Guy Fawkes was the man who was arrested alongside 36 barrels of gunpowder) would today be seen as the successful prevention of Catholic terrorism! Indeed, until the late nineteenth century, it was common practice to burn effigies of the Pope. Now that occurs only at Lewes, East Sussex, where the celebrations also commemorate the memory of seventeen Protestant martyrs who were burnt at the stake in the town during the Marian persecutions of 1555–1557. More Catholic terrorism!
For those of you who wish to learn more about Guy Fawkes, the Gunpowder Plot, and Bonfire Night, go here, here, and here. For more links go here, here, here, here, and here. For the official perspective go here. If you wish to read advice on how to let off fireworks safely, go here. And if you wish to read about Bonfire Night in less safety-conscious days, go here for a report from Somerset in 1889 and here for a report on London in the 1950s. While researching this article, I read that Bonfire Night is celebrated in New Zealand, South Africa, Canada, and some parts of the United States.
Gunpowder Treason Day, as Guy Fawkes Day was known, was once commemorated as an official holiday in the Church of England calendar, together with two other holidays marking important events in the history of the English monarchy. The first is the execution of King Charles the Martyr on January 30, 1649. That’s Charles I who is the last saint to be canonized by the Church of England. The second is Oak Apple Day (May 29, 1660), which marks the restoration of his son Charles II to the throne. Parliament did not abolish these holidays until 1859. I assume they were also observed by the Episcopal Church in the Thirteen Colonies.
Gunpowder, treason and plot,
I see no reason why gunpowder treason
Should ever be forgot.
I cannot permit the four hundredth anniversary of the Catholic conspiracy to blow up the Houses of Parliament and kill King James I and his ministers to pass without recognition.
Growing up just outside London, I well remember Guy Fawkes Day and the perennial ritual of burning stuffed effigies (of Guy Fawkes) on bonfires and firework displays. Those were the days when kids could buy large and potentially dangerous fireworks. They would take to the streets displaying their effigies to solicit funds (“A penny for the guy”) to pay for their fireworks. I remember when an “old” (pre-decimalization) penny would buy you a sparkler or a banger, tuppence (two pennies) would buy you a Jumping Jack, and a shilling would buy you a couple of Roman candles. No more. Inflation has eaten away at the purchasing power of the currency. And government laws now prohibit the purchase of “adult fireworks” by anyone under eighteen. Although the British state does not prohibit privately organized firework parties, the authorities encourage people to gather in carefully monitored areas for public displays at taxpayer’s expense.
I guess the discovery of the conspiracy under Robert Catesbury and twelve others (Guy Fawkes was the man who was arrested alongside 36 barrels of gunpowder) would today be seen as the successful prevention of Catholic terrorism! Indeed, until the late nineteenth century, it was common practice to burn effigies of the Pope. Now that occurs only at Lewes, East Sussex, where the celebrations also commemorate the memory of seventeen Protestant martyrs who were burnt at the stake in the town during the Marian persecutions of 1555–1557. More Catholic terrorism!
For those of you who wish to learn more about Guy Fawkes, the Gunpowder Plot, and Bonfire Night, go here, here, and here. For more links go here, here, here, here, and here. For the official perspective go here. If you wish to read advice on how to let off fireworks safely, go here. And if you wish to read about Bonfire Night in less safety-conscious days, go here for a report from Somerset in 1889 and here for a report on London in the 1950s. While researching this article, I read that Bonfire Night is celebrated in New Zealand, South Africa, Canada, and some parts of the United States.
Gunpowder Treason Day, as Guy Fawkes Day was known, was once commemorated as an official holiday in the Church of England calendar, together with two other holidays marking important events in the history of the English monarchy. The first is the execution of King Charles the Martyr on January 30, 1649. That’s Charles I who is the last saint to be canonized by the Church of England. The second is Oak Apple Day (May 29, 1660), which marks the restoration of his son Charles II to the throne. Parliament did not abolish these holidays until 1859. I assume they were also observed by the Episcopal Church in the Thirteen Colonies.