bonfire night?
bluesqueak
pipdowns at etchells0.demon.co.uk
Sun Nov 7 08:37:03 UTC 2004
--- In HPFGU-OTChatter at yahoogroups.com, LunaLovesHarry at a... wrote:
> In a message dated 11/6/2004 8:23:53 AM Pacific Standard Time,
> HPFGU-OTChatter at yahoogroups.com writes:
>
> > Hope all Brits had a lovely Bonfire Night, by the way, without
> > fireworks-related injuries.
>
> Bonfire night? Whats that?
>
> "Luna"
> (the obvious American who has no clue what bonfire night is.)
Pip!Squeak:
Remember, remember, the Fifth of November
Gunpowder Treason and Plot
There is no reason why gunpowder treason
Should ever be forgot.
{g}
(There are lots of small variations on this song; that's the one I
know)
You can find a website about the history behind Bonfire Night here:
http://www.bonefire.org/guy/ and here:
http://www.woodlands-junior.kent.sch.uk/customs/Guy.html
I rather like the Woodlands Junior School version. But basically,
Bonfire Night commemorates the preservation of the then King, James
I and the houses of Parliament by the discovery of a plot to blow
them up; the plot was discovered on November 5th 1605, when the
gunpowder was already in the basement of Parliament.
The event is commemorated with bonfires, huge outdoor fires that
sometimes get out of control. Because one of the leading traitors
(Guy Fawkes) was executed by burning, there's often a stuffed effigy
on top. Sometimes the effigy bears a notable resemblance to a more
modern unpopular person. Fireworks are let off in great profusion
(it was a *Gunpowder* plot, see {g}) and there is much eating of
baked potatoes, burnt sausages, treacle toffee, and sometimes a
traditional cake called 'parkin', which is a bit like a ginger cake
with oatmeal in it.
It's also the reason why Halloween isn't a very big festival in
Britain; Bonfire Night is so close to it that it, not Halloween, has
become the main 'hello, winter!' festival.
Pip!Squeak
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