British Prepare to Celebrate Failed Plot to Blow Up Parliament

The British are preparing to celebrate an event that happened over 400 years ago. Bonfire Night, or Guy Fawkes Night, is celebrated in England on November 5. This celebration marks the foiling of a plot by Guy Fawkes and a band of Catholics hoping to end their persecution by blowing up Parliament and hopefully killing the King of England and the Prince of Wales in the process. If you are traveling to England this November, learning about British history, or just looking for another holiday to celebrate between Halloween and Thanksgiving, Bonfire Night is the holiday for you!

What happened in 1605?
In 1605 a group of men hoarded barrels of gunpowder and plotted to use that gunpowder to blow up Parliament. The "Gunpowder Plot" was ended when authorities became aware of the plot and caught Guy Fawkes red-handed with the gunpowder in a cellar. He and the other plotters were tortured and killed by the authorities.

How did Bonfire Night come about?
Bonfire Night is rumored to have started in the same year that Guy Fawkes was captured and the plot thwarted. Bonfires were started and dolls representing Guy Fawkes and the other conspirators were burned. As the celebration has grown and changed over the past 400 years, fireworks have become an integral part of the evening's celebrations, hence the comparisons to Independence Day by many Americans. Bonfires are still lit and dolls are still burned in effigy.