Hey, Anonymous! Where’d you get that mask?
Recently popularized in America by the big screen adaptation of Alan Moore and David Lloyd’s V for Vendetta, the opening sequence of this poem originated as part of an annual religious sermon to English royal subjects as a reminder of The Gunpowder Plot, and that treason would never be tolerated.
The sermon, originally entitled ‘Please to Remember the 5th of November’ is commonly read as:
Remember, remember the Fifth of November,
The Gunpowder Treason and Plot,
I know of* no reason
Why the Gunpowder Treason
Should ever be forgot.
Guy Fawkes, Guy Fawkes, t’was his intent
To blow up the King and Parli’ment.
Three-score barrels of powder below
To prove old England’s overthrow;
By God’s providence he was catch’d (or by God’s mercy*)
With a dark lantern and burning match.
Holloa boys, holloa boys, let the bells ring. (Holla*)
Holloa boys, holloa boys, God save the King!
The story goes that in the spring of 1604, Thomas Percy, resentful of England’s position towards Catholicism, plotted with a league of conspirators to detonate kegs of Gunpowder underneath the House of Lords for the purpose of killing King James and other prominent members of the Church of England, which would ultimately incite a revolt culminating in Catholic reformation across England. Historical revue maintains that while the gunpowder had actually degraded to a state of uselessness, the full force of the blast would have been devastating: complete demolition of the house of lords and residual impact to neighboring structures within a 1 km radius.
As the man chiefly responsible for ensuring the positioning and detonation of the powder kegs, Guy Fawkes has received considerable notoriety for his role in this event. Specifically, the evening of November 5th is commonly referred to as “Guy Fawkes Night” and his image burned in effigy during bonfires while children ask for a ‘penny for the guy’. These proceeds are used to purchase fireworks and candy. Just as the Sun once never set on the English empire, this event is remembered among many of England’s most prominent colonies including New Zealand, Canada, and South Africa.
As mentioned earlier, Alan Moore used this event and Guy Fawkes as a plot device in his 10-issue comic book run V for Vendetta. However, Mr. Moore reconsiders the significance of this event with startling insight. Instead of using the Gunpowder plot as a means of inspiring loyalty to governance, Mr. Moore suggests government should always be mindful of the power of its citizens when united in common cause.
