South Milford & Lumby

Thanks to Andrew Robinson and his merry band of helpers for making this yet another Bonfire night to remember
The Batty Family must also be thanked for letting us host the bonfire on their fields for the past 15 years - we could not have had a better venue.

Winners of the prize draw (ticket 3388) won by
F Braithwaite:

Dear bonfire committee
Despite living in Leeds, we had never been to South Milford before. We were very impressed by both the event and the village. Walking through the quiet and tidy town we couldn’t believe we were only 10 miles from Leeds. The people in town were really friendly and the event was very well run. The community spirit of the village spoke for itself. This was the first Guy Fawkes Day for our daughter Phoebe and the bonfire and fireworks were spectacular . For Erin and I, the steak pie and parkin (sp?) brought a perfect end to the evening.

I bit of history

What has become the Guy Fawkes legacy and a exciting British festival started around midnight 400 years ago on November 4th. Guy Fawkes was captured as a result of an anonymous letter which was sent to a Catholic Peer, Lord Monteagle, warning him to stay away from the opening of Parliament on 5th November 1605.

Fawkes was brought before the Privy Council on that day and, following many bouts of gruesome torture and under great duress, finally admitted he and his other conspirators had planned to free Sir Walter Raleigh & other prisoners held in the Tower of London by blowing up Parliament
with a large cache of gunpowder. Thus the legend and the festival relating to the legend - lives on throughout the country in the form of ritualist bonfire and fireworks.

Many people are unaware that Guy Fawkes was a Yorkshireman. He was born in 1570 in the Stonegate district of York, attended St Peter's School in the area and later served in the Militia in the Netherlands. After twelve years he trained as a miner and it was in the course of that, that he became highly skilled in both the use of gunpowder as an explosive and in the practices of tunnelling.

It was around this time that he met Christopher Wright and tried to persuade him to obtain Spanish support for an invasion of England. On April 25th, 1604 Fawkes arrived in England with Thomas Wintour and in the May joined the Gunpowder Plot with Robert Catesby. Their intention? To destroy the Palace of Westminster, the Houses of Parliament & King James 1.

Four days after his arrest, after extreme torture, and being told some of them had already been arrested Fawkes revealed the names of his twelve co-conspirators. He was then dealt the punishment given to traitors. He was to be hung, drawn and quartered on New Year's Eve. He was hung until half dead, his genitals were cut off and burned in front of him. Then, whilst still alive, his heart & bowels were removed from his body, he was decapitated & his limbs removed and these parts publicly displayed & left for birds to eat.

Did you know... until 1959 it was illegal not to celebrate the date of Guy Fawkes arrest in England?

North Yorkshire

Community Bonfire 2007

What a night!!!!

Fantastic Bonfire, Amazing Fireworks,
Excellent Food and Fine Weather

Winners of the prize draw (ticket 3388) won by
F Braithwaite:

I bit of history