In England, it is customary to celebrate Guy Fawkes Night from 4 to 5 November. As soon as dusk deepens, processions begin in large cities. Parade participants carry a scarecrow depicting Guy Fawkes, and then burn it in the main square. All this ends with fireworks. On this day, fireworks are launched, participants of the holiday dance around bonfires, dress up in medieval costumes. Children and teenagers run through the streets and beg from passers-by for "a penny for Guy." Begging is permitted because they will then spend these coins on firecrackers. Who is Guy Fawkes? Why has his name become a household name? short biography
Guy Fawkes was born into the family of a Yorkshire nobleman Edward Fox on April 13, 1570. In 1578, the boy lost his father. At this time he studied at the school of St. Peter. His mother, Edith, in 1587 decided to marry Denis Bainbridge, and her new husband was in charge of the property of the widow's son. Becoming an adult, Fox sold everything that was left, and got a job with Anthony Brown, later fought in Flanders. In 1606 he was executed.
Conspirators
In the 17th century, English authorities persecuted Catholics. In 1603, the throne passed to James I. He himself was a Protestant, but he treated Catholics well when compared with previous rulers. The British felt this and were glad of the king, who does not stir up religious strife.
But not everyone was happy with the Protestant king. In 1605, a group of conspirators from noble aristocratic families gathered. Guy Fawkes was among them. They planned to put Princess Elizabeth on the throne. At that time she was a child, i.e. until she came of age, the country would have been ruled by Catholic regents. Robert Catesby was in charge, but Guy Fawkes got the main role.
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The conspirators' plans
The conspirators planned to assassinate the king and members of the House of Lords. They hoped that this murder would provoke a riot, and that it would help carry out their intentions to change the government.
On November 5, 1605, the king was about to give a speech. On this day, all significant people of the state would be near him. In this place, the conspirators decided to hide thirty-six barrels filled with gunpowder. As soon as the king and his subjects were inside the building, there would be an explosion. If the plans of the conspirators were realized, the entire parliament building with the famous Big Ben would be destroyed, Westminster Abbey would be damaged, and all residents of the nearest houses would lose their windows.
The plans were almost successful. There were barrels full of gunpowder hidden in the room. A total of 2.5 tons of gunpowder were prepared. The most important task was entrusted to Guy Fawkes. He hated the king, was known as a religious fanatic, so he gladly agreed to light the fuse. Plus Guy knew how to handle explosives. The rest of the conspirators hid for a while in Warwickshire. Everything was thought out and prepared. But the plans of the conspirators failed.
Failure
William Parker, Lord Montigle, on October 26, 1605, received a warning letter from an anonymous author. Some historians are sure that the lord wrote this letter to himself in order to save the king and thereby earn his favor. He was later rewarded for this. The lord went to the Earl of Salisbury, and he gave an anonymous letter to the king. The ruler was angry and decided to punish the criminals. But he did not act rashly, and pretended not to suspect anything.
Guy Fawkes could have fallen into a trap. Secret informants brought information about the letter to the conspirators, but they did not pay attention to it. Guy Fawkes personally went down to the basement and was able to confirm that the barrels were still in place. The plans have not changed. On the night of November 4-5, he went to the basement to carry out his malicious intent, where he was caught. The evidence was too serious, so the perpetrator did not make excuses.
Execution
On November 5, at night, Fox was in the King's chamber. He began to question the conspirator. Fox did not bother and said that he wanted to kill him. He did not repent of what he had done, he was insolent and rude to the king. After that, Guy was taken to prison and tortured. Unable to bear it, he told about his accomplices. A real hunt for the conspirators began. They were looked for all over the country. Many of them resisted the authorities, so they were killed during their arrest. But for the conspirators, this was the best way out. the rest were awaiting a terrible execution.
On January 27, 1606, they were found guilty and sentenced to death. The execution took place a few days later. At that time, criminals who were accused of treason to the sovereign were subjected to a terrible execution. At first they were hung on a rope, but they were not allowed to die. Then the rope was cut off, the culprit was castrated, the entrails were taken out, they were burned. Later the body was quartered. But Fox was able to outwit the executioners. With a rope around his neck, he jumped down and died from a broken neck, although he had suffered from the executioners before that, since on the way to execution, all the participants in the conspiracy had their body parts cut off and thrown across the city streets. Later, the heads of those executed were displayed on London Bridge.
Both the conspiracy itself and the reprisals against the conspirators are terrible. But the inhabitants of London could not help but rejoice that it was revealed, because many of them could have died from the explosion. The townspeople decided to celebrate their salvation and, rejoicing, began to burn bonfires, launched fireworks into the night sky. One of them stuffed Guy Fawkes, and he was immediately burned to the cheers of the crowd. Moreover, parliament passed a law according to which November 5 became a holiday. This law was valid until 1859, then it was canceled.
But the tradition of celebrating the day of the king's salvation remained. Until now, on November 5, the streets of London are filled with crowds of people in vintage costumes. Music is heard everywhere, fireworks are launched into the sky, and thousands of people are going to watch how the effigy of the conspirator will be burned, although many no longer remember who it is. Thus, a terrible conspiracy marked the beginning of a new tradition. On this day, people have fun, not thinking about religious wars, murders and other horrors, which, unfortunately, accompanied the history of the reign of more than one crowned person.
Author: Lilia Shakirova