the Gunpowder Plot
/ðə ˈɡʌnpaʊdə plɒt/
/ðə ˈɡʌnpaʊdər plɑːt/
- a secret plan by a group of Roman Catholics to blow up the Houses of Parliament and kill King James I in 1605. They put gunpowder (= an explosive powder) in the cellars before the opening of Parliament by the King on 5 November. The plan was discovered before the gunpowder could be exploded, and one of the group, Guy Fawkes, was arrested and forced to give the names of the others. His name has remained the only one most people know, although he was not the leader of the group. Every year, before the opening of Parliament, the cellars are searched in a special ceremony.Culture Bonfire NightBonfire NightBritish people celebrate Bonfire Night every year on 5 November in memory of a famous event in British history, the Gunpowder Plot. On 5 November 1605 a group of Roman Catholics planned to blow up the Houses of Parliament while King James I was inside. On the evening before, one of them, Guy Fawkes, was caught in the cellars with gunpowder, and the plot was discovered. He and all the other conspirators (= people involved in the plan) were put to death. Bonfire Night is sometimes called Guy Fawkes Night.Originally, Bonfire Night was celebrated as a victory for Protestants over Catholics, but the festival is now enjoyed by everyone. Some children make a guy, a figure of a man made of old clothes stuffed with newspaper or straw to represent Guy Fawkes. The guy is then burned on top of a bonfire (= a large fire in a garden or park) on Bonfire Night. Children used to take their guy into the street a few days before Bonfire Night and ask for a ‘penny for the guy’, money for fireworks (= small devices containing powder that burn or explode and produce bright coloured lights and loud noises), but now it is less common for people to hold private bonfire parties in their gardens than to attend larger public events organized by local councils or charities. Chestnuts or potatoes are sometimes put in the bonfire so that they will cook as it burns. Fireworks such as Roman candles, Catherine wheels (NAmE pinwheels), bangers and rockets are put in the ground and are let off one by one. Children hold lighted sparklers in their hands and wave them around to make patterns. By law, only adults are allowed to buy fireworks, and because, unfortunately, there are sometimes accidents involving fireworks there are now limits on the type of fireworks that can be used by the general public.The events of 5 November 1605 are celebrated in a nursery rhyme:“Please to remember,The fifth of November,Gunpowder, treason and plot.”