Why Brits Celebrate the Day Someone Tried to Blow Up Their Parliament
The strange patriotism of Guy Fawkes Day
Remember, remember the fifth of November.
Guy Fawkes Night, held every year on the November 5, marks the anniversary of the discovery of a plot to blow up the Houses of Parliament and kill King James I in London in 1605. The eponymous Guy Fawkes and his band of catholic conspirators were discovered and eventually executed and tried for treason.
To celebrate the night, people across Britain light bonfires, burn effigies of Fawkes and set off fireworks. In some parts of the country, celebration last for around a month, with multiple villages participating in parades and bonfire events.
But why do Brits continue to celebrate this strange event?
The Origin Story
In the period following Henry VIII’s break from the Roman Catholic Church, Britain was locked in a conflict between protestant and catholic control of the monarchy. This conflict has been popularised in dramas about the warring rivalry between the protestant Queen Elizabeth I and her catholic cousin Mary Queen of Scots. Under Elizabeth there had been widespread persecution of Catholics. It was only in 1603 when Mary’s son King James VI of Scotland ascended the throne…
