"Remember remember the 5th of November!"
This weekend Britain will commemorate the failed gunpowder plot with traditional bonfires and firework displays all over the country in memory of, mainly, Guy Fawkes who was caught attempting to blow up the Houses of Parliament in 1605.
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| Gunpowder Plot, 1605 |
The tradition remembers the
failure of the Gunpowder Plot that took in place November 1605 under the Houses of Parliament by a group of Roman
Catholic activists led by Warwickshire-born Robert Catesby, who planned to assassinate King James I and restore a Catholic monarch to the throne.
When Protestant King James I acceded Queen Elizabeth, English Catholics
had hoped that the persecution they had felt for the last 45 years would finally end, but when this didn't happen the conspirators plotted to assassinate the King and his ministers during the state opening at the Houses of Parliament. The plotters secured the lease to an undercroft beneath the House of Lords, and Fawkes was placed in charge of 36 barrels of gunpowder that they smuggled in a cellar below the House of Lords. It has been discovered this was enough to destroy not only the entire building but anything within a 500 metre radius.
The scheme started to fall apart when an anonymous letter sent to
William Parker, the 4th Baron Monteagle, warned him not to avoid the
House of Lords. This lead to the authorities searching Westminster Palace
during the early hours of 5 November, and found Fawkes guarding the
explosives. Over the next few days, he was questioned and tortured, and
eventually he broke. Immediately before his execution on 31 January,
Fawkes jumped from the scaffold where he was to be hanged and broke his
neck, thus avoiding the agony of the mutilation that followed.
Today the tradition of searching Parliament before a state opening still takes place every November since 1928, by the Yeomen of the Guard, and they are still armed with lanterns.
Fawkes has become synonymous with the Gunpowder Plot, the failure of which has been commemorated in Britain since 5 November 1605. His effigy is traditionally burned on a bonfire, commonly accompanied by a fireworks display.
Take a look at our range of dazzling sparklers, good enough to "Oooohhh!" and "Aaaahhh!" at.
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| A hand coloured print over 100 years old, perhaps unloading the barrels of gunpowder, offered by Moe Heidarieh |
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| A dazzling burst of colour that looks like spinning catherine wheels. A 20th century Murano glass mirror, offered by Sambataro |
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| Beautiful fireworks style Scottish glass paper weights, offered by Gloria Sinclair |
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| A pearl and 18ct gold brooch/pendant. An orange Burmese pendant and a stunning amethyst 18ct gold pendant, all offered by Pars Jewellery |
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| A fun vintage silk scarf depicting a rainy day, 'Raining Cats And Dogs', offered by Tin Tin Collectables |
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