Remember Remember...

Remember Remember!  

Every year on the 5th of November, skies across Britain burst into colour. Bonfires blaze, fireworks crackle, and people clutching sparklers chant: “Remember, remember, the fifth of November…” But how much do we remember about Guy Fawkes and the Gunpowder Plot? (Spoiler alert: it wasn’t just one guy with a dodgy beard and a barrel of explosives) 

Let’s rewind to 1605: when King James I sat on the throne. England was divided by religion. A group of Catholic conspirators, frustrated by years of persecution, decided they’d had enough. Their plan? Blow up the Houses of Parliament during the State Opening, killing the King and his government in one spectacular bang. Subtle, it was not. 

Enter Guy Fawkes, the group’s go-to explosives expert. Born in York, he’d fought for Catholic Spain and knew a thing or two about gunpowder. Fawkes and his fellow plotters managed to stash 36 barrels of the stuff under the House of Lords, enough to turn Westminster into a crater. The plan was set for November 5th. 

But their secret didn’t stay secret. A mysterious letter warning a nobleman to stay away that day reached the authorities. Cue a midnight search of Parliament’s cellars - and there they found Fawkes, armed with matches and a very awkward look on his face. He was arrested, tortured until he confessed, and later executed in the grisly fashion of the time (we’ll spare you the details - let’s just say it wasn’t pretty). 

And so… the Gunpowder Plot fizzled out. The conspirators’ dream of rebellion literally went up in smoke. But from their failure came one of Britain’s strangest traditions: celebrating a failed terrorist plot by setting off fireworks and burning effigies of the man himself. 

So next time you’re watching the sky light up, spare a thought for poor Guy Fawkes - the man who aimed to blow up Parliament and instead became the face of Bonfire Night snacks and sparklers. History has a funny way of turning villains into icons, doesn’t it? 

Fun Fact: 

The word “guy” actually comes from Guy Fawkes! Over time, “a Guy” came to mean any oddly dressed person - and eventually, just any man. So… every “guy” you meet owes a tiny linguistic debt to England’s most famous would-be bomber. 

However, what I can't understand is why do we learn and celebrate a day which commemorates a - lets face it- an attempt of a terrorist attack on the government? National leaders are notorious for banning anything that casts a negative image over their policies and ideas- you don't have to look far: The many fascist leaders for in the 40's who favoured censorship and mass murder as a way to remove any negative images of them such as Franco, Hitler, Mussolini or even just across the Atlantic to the endless list of books and essays Trump has decided to ban. So why hasn't the 5th of November 1605 made the list of forgotten events of the past- a day named after the Guy who has against the government?

It is in fact, essentially a mockery of Gun Powder plot's failure. Yes that's right we don't set of fireworks to remember Guy Fawkes, but to laugh and make a mockery of him. It is supposedly a symbol of the country's commitment to democracy. Had it been a successful attempt the event would almost certainly been shoved in the dark corners of History like events similar for example The Salem Witch Trials. What do you think about the tradition of celebrating failure?