BONFIRE NIGHT
On this day in 1605, thirteen young men planned to blow up the Houses of Parliament. Among them was Britain's most notorious traitor, a man called Guy Fawkes. They rented a house next to Parliament, dug a tunnel, and into the tunnel they placed 36 barrels (1.5 tonnes) of gunpowder).
One of the group members, a man called Francis Tresham, became a traitor to his companions. He sent an anonymous letter warning his brother-in-law, Lord Monteagle, telling him not to attend Parliament on November 5th. As a result, Guy Fawkes and some of his companions were captured and the plot foiled. They were imprisoned and tortured, and on January 31st 1606, Guy Fawkes and seven others were hanged.
On the very night that the Gunpowder Plot was foiled, on November 5th, 1605, bonfires were set alight to celebrate the safety of the King. Since then, November 5th has become known as Bonfire Night. The event is commemorated every year with fireworks and burning effigies of Guy Fawkes on a bonfire.