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Bonfire Night quiz

15 questions on Bonfire Night, also called Guy Fawkes Night, on 5 November: the Gunpowder Plot of 1605, Guy Fawkes, the warning letter, the search under Parliament, the Thanksgiving Act, the Yeomen of the Guard, guys and bonfires, fireworks, toffee apples, parkin and the Lewes bonfire societies. One question at a time, the explanation and a source link after each answer, and your score at the end. Free, no account. Works offline once loaded.

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  1. Read the question and tap one of four answers.
  2. You see at once whether you were right, with the explanation and a link to the source.
  3. After 15 questions you get your score and a result to copy and share. To host it at the pub table, read the questions below aloud and open the answers when everyone has decided.

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Spending Bonfire Night away from home?

Come Alone lists events you can join on your own, and the Meet & Mint app shows events and people near you on one map.

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Sources

All 15 questions

  1. 1. What did the Gunpowder Plotters of 1605 plan to do?

    1. Steal the Crown Jewels
    2. Capture the Tower of London
    3. Blow up Parliament and King James I
    4. Sink the royal fleet
    Show answer

    C. Blow up Parliament and King James I

    A group of English Catholics planned to blow up the House of Lords at the State Opening of Parliament, killing King James I and many of the political elite.

    Source: https://www.britannica.com/event/Gunpowder-Plot

  2. 2. Who led the Gunpowder Plot?

    1. Guy Fawkes
    2. Robert Catesby
    3. Thomas Percy
    4. Lord Monteagle
    Show answer

    B. Robert Catesby

    Robert Catesby was the leader. Guy Fawkes was the explosives man, and he is remembered as the face of the plot.

    Source: https://www.parliament.uk/about/faqs/house-of-commons-faqs/gunpowder-plot/

  3. 3. Why was Guy Fawkes recruited to the plot?

    1. He was a royal guard
    2. He was a lawyer in Parliament
    3. He had a barge on the Thames
    4. He had served as a soldier in the Spanish army in the Netherlands
    Show answer

    D. He had served as a soldier in the Spanish army in the Netherlands

    Fawkes had fought in the Spanish army in the Netherlands, and his military experience made him the group's expert with gunpowder.

    Source: https://www.britannica.com/biography/Guy-Fawkes

  4. 4. What false name did Fawkes give when he was found beneath Parliament?

    1. John Johnson
    2. John Smith
    3. William Parker
    4. Thomas Wright
    Show answer

    A. John Johnson

    He gave his name as John Johnson. The fuses and timer he was carrying soon showed who he really was.

    Source: https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/education/resources/gunpowder-plot/

  5. 5. What led the authorities to search the rooms below Parliament?

    1. A fire in the cellars
    2. A report from a night watchman
    3. An anonymous letter warning Lord Monteagle to stay away
    4. A shipment of barrels at the docks
    Show answer

    C. An anonymous letter warning Lord Monteagle to stay away

    A few days before the State Opening, Lord Monteagle received an anonymous letter telling him to stay away. He passed it on to the Privy Council and the King.

    Source: https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/education/resources/gunpowder-plot/

  6. 6. How many barrels of gunpowder did the search find, according to The National Archives?

    1. 12
    2. 36
    3. 60
    4. 100
    Show answer

    B. 36

    Sir Thomas Knyvett's search found Guy Fawkes and 36 barrels of gunpowder, hidden under firewood, enough to destroy the whole Palace of Westminster.

    Source: https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/education/resources/gunpowder-plot/

  7. 7. What did Parliament order in January 1606 to mark the plot's failure?

    1. A yearly feast at Westminster Hall
    2. A new royal palace
    3. A day off for all workers
    4. A day of thanksgiving on 5 November, with prayers and church bells
    Show answer

    D. A day of thanksgiving on 5 November, with prayers and church bells

    The Thanksgiving Act made 5 November a day of public thanksgiving, with prayers said and church bells rung because King James had been spared.

    Source: https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/education/resources/gunpowder-plot/

  8. 8. Until which year did the law requiring a yearly 5 November observance stay in force?

    1. 1688
    2. 1776
    3. 1859
    4. 1945
    Show answer

    C. 1859

    The Act of 1606 remained in force until 1859.

    Source: https://www.parliament.uk/about/faqs/house-of-commons-faqs/gunpowder-plot/

  9. 9. What ceremony before every State Opening of Parliament goes back to 1605?

    1. The Yeomen of the Guard search the cellars
    2. A cannon salute on the Thames
    3. The Speaker locks the House doors
    4. The Lord Chancellor reads out the plotters' names
    Show answer

    A. The Yeomen of the Guard search the cellars

    Before the monarch arrives, the Yeomen of the Guard search the cellars of the Palace of Westminster, a custom that dates back to the Gunpowder Plot.

    Source: https://www.parliament.uk/about/living-heritage/evolutionofparliament/parliamentwork/offices-and-ceremonies/overview/state-opening/elements-unseen-by-the-public/

  10. 10. What did children traditionally say while showing off a homemade Guy?

    1. “Trick or treat”
    2. “A penny for the Guy”
    3. “God save the King”
    4. “Remember, remember”
    Show answer

    B. “A penny for the Guy”

    Children made straw effigies called guys and took them round the streets asking for “a penny for the Guy”, to help pay for fireworks. The guy then went on the bonfire.

    Source: https://www.britannica.com/topic/Guy-Fawkes-Day

  11. 11. On or around which date do fireworks traditionally light up Britain?

    1. 31 October
    2. 1 January
    3. 4 July
    4. 5 November
    Show answer

    D. 5 November

    A House of Commons factsheet notes that letting off fireworks on or around 5 November is still the custom in Britain.

    Source: https://www.parliament.uk/globalassets/documents/commons-information-office/g08.pdf

  12. 12. Which sweet treat, an apple on a stick in a sugar shell, is a Bonfire Night favourite?

    1. Candy floss pear
    2. Chocolate orange
    3. Toffee apple
    4. Apple strudel
    Show answer

    C. Toffee apple

    VisitBritain lists toffee apples as a popular Bonfire Night sweet.

    Source: https://www.visitbritain.com/en/things-to-do/halloween-and-bonfire-night-britain

  13. 13. What is parkin, the cake linked with Bonfire Night in Yorkshire and Lancashire?

    1. A sticky ginger cake made with treacle
    2. A fruit-filled pastry
    3. A cheese scone
    4. A cold custard tart
    Show answer

    A. A sticky ginger cake made with treacle

    Parkin is a sticky ginger cake made with treacle and syrup, eaten in Yorkshire and Lancashire around 5 November.

    Source: https://www.visitbritain.com/en/things-to-do/halloween-and-bonfire-night-britain

  14. 14. How many bonfire societies take part in the famous Lewes celebration, according to Britannica?

    1. Three
    2. Six
    3. Twelve
    4. Twenty
    Show answer

    B. Six

    Britannica describes six bonfire societies, with family roots going back generations, that parade through Lewes’s narrow streets before splitting off for their own bonfires and fireworks.

    Source: https://www.britannica.com/place/Lewes-England

  15. 15. The Lewes celebration also remembers a 16th-century event. What was it?

    1. A great flood
    2. A royal wedding
    3. A naval victory
    4. Seventeen Protestant martyrs burned in the town
    Show answer

    D. Seventeen Protestant martyrs burned in the town

    Britannica notes that Lewes saw the burning of 17 Protestant martyrs in the 16th century, and the town’s celebration also commemorates them.

    Source: https://www.britannica.com/place/Lewes-England

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