“Remember, remember the fifth of November,
The gunpowder, treason and plot,
I know of no reason
Why the gunpowder treason
Should ever be forgot.”
November 5th is Guy Fawkes Night also known as bonfire night in the UK. This celebration goes back to 1605 when the suppression of the Catholic faith in the UK gave rise to an attempt to blow up the King and the seat of government, the Houses of Parliament.
The conspiracy, known as the Gunpowder plot, was the idea of Robert Catesby but was led by Guy Fawkes a 35-year-old Yorkshire man who had experience with explosives. One of the conspirators had a friend in the Houses of Parliament. A warning letter sent to him to tell him to stay away on the chosen day was intercepted. Fawkes was discovered guarding 36 barrels gunpowder in a cellar under the Houses of Parliament. Fawkes was brought before King James I but would not answer questions beyond his name (which he said was Johnson) and the name of his employer. Torture was not allowable under English law except by direct order of the King. On November 6th King James ordered that it be used and on November 7th Fawkes confessed to the Gunpowder plot and on November 9th he gave the names of the other co-conspirators. After a short trial Fawkes and the other conspirators were hanged, drawn and quartered on January 31st 1606.
Now over 400 hundred years later Fawkes is still remembered with a traditional bonfire and an effigy of him (called a guy) set atop of it. Fireworks are let off to emulate the gunpowder explosions. The time of year dictates warm clothing and often hot food and drinks are consumed around the bonfire.
Why not dress your dolls up warm ready for a night around the bonfire this November 5th with miniature knitting? There are lots of patterns for warm 1:12th scale childrens clothes on our blog pages