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KellyC · 11-05-2005, 05:21 PM

Let's see if I can quote this...

Quote:

Guy Fawkes Night, also known as Bonfire Night and Fireworks Night, is an annual celebration (but not a public holiday) on the evening of the 5th of November in the United Kingdom, New Zealand, South Africa, the province of Newfoundland (Canada), some parts of the USA, and formerly Australia. It celebrates the failure of the Gunpowder Plot, in which a group of Catholic conspirators attempted to blow up the Houses of Parliament in London on the night when Protestant King James I (James VI of Scotland) was within its walls — the evening of 5 November 1605. Some believe the proximity of the event to the pre-Christian festival of Samhain Eve and Halloween are notable, but it is generally agreed that this is a coincidence.

The celebrations, which takes place in towns and villages across the country, involve fireworks displays and the building of a bonfire, upon which is burnt an effigy representing the most famous of the conspirators, Guy Fawkes. Children build popular or humorous dummies and beg for money with the chant "penny for the guy" (the latter tradition is no longer as popular as it once was). The night is closely associated with the popular rhyme which begins:

Remember, remember the fifth of November,
Gunpowder, treason and plot,
I see no reason why gunpowder treason
Should ever be forgot.
(For the full text of the rhyme, see the article on the Gunpowder Plot).

In the United Kingdom, there are several other traditions that accompany Guy Fawkes/Bonfire night; The eating of bonfire toffee; a dark type of toffee made with black treacle; Parkin, a cake made with the same black treacle; toffee apples, the traditional 'apple lollipop', which consists of an apple coated in toffee on top of a stick; and baked potatoes which are traditionally wrapped in foil and cooked in the bonfire.

In recent years it has also become the primary night for fireworks displays in the UK, ranging from the amateur to the spectacular. It is only relatively recently (post-millennium) that fireworks have begun to see widespread use outside of Bonfire night, though they have always been available for the couple of months surrounding the 5th.

Despite the nature of the events commemorated, little political or sectarian significance is attached to Bonfire Night in modern times. The later verses of Remember, remember…, which express violent anti-Catholic sentiment, are not widely recalled. Bonfire night is now just as celebrated within the United Kingdom's Catholic communities. The once common practice of burning effigies of the Pope is now largely discontinued (except at Lewes, where the night has additional significance).

Edit: Yes, I can.

..and I learned something new today. Thanks!