Remember, remember the fifth of November: a brief history of Guy Fawkes Night

Over 400 years ago, on November 5 1605, 36 barrels of gunpowder were discovered in a storeroom beneath the Palace of Westminster. Protecting these barrels was a man named John Johnson. Upon the guards’ inspection of the man, they found fuses in his pockets, and John was promptly arrested. It was only after days of endless torture that the ridiculously plain name of John Johnson was revealed to be a farce. His real name was Guy Fawkes. Whether you believe he was a misunderstood anti-hero, or the dirt beneath your shoes, it is a result of his history that we hold an evening of fireworks to welcome autumn. With a steaming drink to warn the cold away, as you wait for the festivities to begin, perhaps you could tell the story of the man whom this night is named after. You will discover who Guy Fawkes is, so you can share with friends and family this November 5.

The triumph of discovering and foiling the ‘Gunpowder Plot’ is a story of rebellion, religion, and riot

Fawkes and his associates dreamt of sparking a Catholic uprising 70 years after King Henry VIII declared himself Supreme Head of the Church in England and broke from Roman Catholicism in 1534. This uprising was deemed the ‘Gunpowder Plot’ of 1604. The triumph of discovering and foiling the ‘Gunpowder Plot’ is a story of rebellion, religion, and riot. But who were these conspirators, and why did they decide to desecrate one of the most influential buildings in Britain?

England was a steadfast Roman Catholic country before the 16th century. At the time, translating the bible from Latin to English was seen as radical, and questioning the Pope’s figure as Christ’s representative on earth was punishable. Yet, as the 16th century began, Protestantism gained popularity as the Roman Catholic Church came under political attack. Henry VIII had continually defended Catholicism and was named ‘Defender of the Faith’ by the Pope, even as Protestantism gained popularity across northern Europe. However, this quickly flipped after the church stood between Henry and another woman. The king was unhappily married and pining for another woman, Anne Boleyn, and so, requested an annulment from his first wife, Catherine of Aragon. When the church declined, he split away from Rome and ended the Pope’s religious authority in England. Suddenly, translations of the Bible were being made, and the pope had been stripped of authority. Although the king seemed happy, what happened to the devout Catholics in England?

Catesby’s plot was simple. Well, as simple as blowing up a large and public building could be

Guy Fawkes was raised a protestant who converted, under his stepfather’s influence, into a devout Roman Catholic. At 21, Fawkes fought for Catholic Spain against Protestant Dutch reformers in the Eighty Years War. It is theorised that Fawkes became very familiar with explosives in his service. 15 years later, on May 20 1604, in a London pub called Dog and Duck, a group of devout Catholics, most notably Robert Catesby, Thomas Winter, John Wright, Thomas Percy and Guy Fawkes, stepped through the doors. Inside, they plotted. Guy Fawkes was not the mastermind as the name of the festival suggests, but rather, it was Robert Catesby. By October 1605, more plotters joined the fold, now a group of 13 – an unfortunate, unpropitious number.

Catesby’s plot was simple. Well, as simple as blowing up a large and public building could be. All he wanted to do, was explode the Palace of Westminster during the opening of Parliament, assassinating the newly appointed King James I and his heir, Prince Henry. With King James dead, chaos would arise, allowing plotters to travel to Coventry in search of the King’s young daughter, Elizabeth. By installing her as queen with a Catholic nobleman ruling on her behalf, Catesby and his associates hoped to return England to Rome.

Although the act was dissolved in 1859, the 21st century carries on this tradition through spiralling showers of colours, over toffee apples and bonfires

Parliament officially opened on November 5. Guy Fawkes made his penultimate check on the gunpowder on October 30. Lord Monteagle received an anonymous letter on 26 October 26. According to the Natural Archives, it read: ‘God and man hath concurred to punish the wickedness of this time… they shall receive a terrible blow this parliament and yet they shall not see who hurts them’. King James was informed of the breach, and through Monteagle’s servants, Catesby was told that the plot had been betrayed. Catesby, stubborn and confident that the letter was too vague, urged the plotters to continue. The night before Parliament opened, Guy Fawkes was discovered. Tortured and quartered, Fawkes relinquished the names of his associates.

In triumph, Parliament passed ‘An Act for a Public Thanksgiving to Almighty God every Year on the Fifth Day of November’. Although the act was dissolved in 1859, the 21st century carries on this tradition through spiralling showers of colours, over toffee apples and bonfires. On the fifth, most of us will gather with our families and friends, bundled in warm clothes, necks craned to the exploding sky – the same sky Guy Fawkes and his associates wanted to paint red over 400 years ago.