The Commonwealth

HOUSE OF STUART

1603 - 1714

The House of Stuart

The name of the family who were kings and queens of Scotland from 1371 to 1714. When Elizabeth I of Eng­land died without any children in 1603, her relative James VI of Scotland became also James I of Eng­land. The Stuarts continued to be kings and queens of England and Scotland until 1714, when the Act of Settlement made the House of Hanover the British royal family.

James I (1566-1625) the king of England (1603 – 1625) and of Scotland (as James VI) from 1567 to 1625. His mother was Mary Queen of Scots. As a relative of Elizabeth I he became King of England after she died, uniting Scotland and England under one government. He was not a popular king, however, and Roman Cath­olic opposition led to the Gunpowder Plot (1605). His son Charles I became king after he died. James I is associated with the Jacobean period in litera­ture and the arts.

The Gunpowder Plot

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.

Bonfire Night

British 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 (= an explosive), and the plot was discovered. He and all the other conspirators 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 on Bon­fire Night. A few weeks before, children take their guy into the street and ask for a 'penny for the guy'. They use the money to buy fireworks (= small packets of explosives which, when lit, make a bang or send a shower of coloured light into the air). Only adults are legally allowed to buy fireworks.

Some people hold private bonfire parties in their gardens, while others attend larger public events or­ganized by local councils or charities. Chestnuts or potatoes are often put in the bonfire so that they will cook as it burns. Fireworks such as Roman Candles, Catherine Wheels, bangers and rockets are put in the ground and are let off one by one. Children hold lighted sparklers (= metal sticks covered in a hard chemical substance that burns brightly when lit) in their hands and wave them around to make pat­terns. Unfortunately, there are sometimes accidents involving fireworks and there are now restrictions 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;

I know no reason

Why gunpowder treason

Should ever be forgot.

Charles I (1600-49) king of England, Scotland and Ireland (1625-49). He often disagreed with Parliament, and in 1629 he stopped it meeting and tried to rule the country without it until 1640, when he needed parliament to help raise money for a war against Scotland. The Long Parliament refused to help him, and this led to the English Civil War. Charles was arrested in 1647 and two years later he was killed by having his head cut off.

The Commonwealth

A period (1649-60) in English history when the country was governed without a king or queen. For the first four years after the death of King Charles I, the country was governed by the House of Commons. Then in 1653 the army gave power to Oliver Cromwell with the title of Lord Pro­tector. The years 1653-9 are therefore known as the Protectorate. The Commonwealth ended with the Restoration of King Charles II.

Дата добавления: 2015-10-30