How much do you really know about the man who has inspired so many bonfire celebrations?

Caught taking part in a plot to blow up James I and his parliament on 5 November 1605, Guy Fawkes' capture has been celebrated for more than 400 years, yet most of us know little about the man himself. Some of these facts may surprise you.

1. Guy Fawkes, who was born on the 13 April 1570, liked to be addressed as 'Guido'. This was probably due to the time he spent fighting for the Spanish against the Dutch in the Netherlands. This is also where he gained experience working with explosives.

2. While he was involved in the Gunpowder Plot, Fawkes called himself John Johnson. This is the name he gave when he was arrested.

3. After being discovered, Fawkes was taken to the King's bedchamber to explain why he wanted to kill him. Fawkes answered that he regarded the King as a disease after he had been excommunicated by the Pope. He also explained that he needed such a large quantity of gunpowder so that he could "blow you Scotch beggars back to your own native mountains!".

4. Fawkes was tortured for four days before he admitted his involvement in the plot and gave the names of the others who took part. His signature on the confession – 'Guido Fawkes' – is so shaky and faint that it's barely legible.

5. Fawkes and his fellow plotters were tried on 31 January 1606 and then hanged, drawn and quartered in the Old Palace Yard. Contrary to bonfire night tradition, his body was never thrown on a fire: this was the development of a pagan tradition that had taken place since the 13th century in which dummies were burnt on a fire to drive away evil spirits.

"Had Guy Fawkes' plot been successful the explosion could have reached from St. James's Park to the London Eye"

6. The word 'bonfire' originates from the term 'bone fire', referring both to when bones were used as fuel and the practice of burning witches and other people who were believed to be 'unholy' rather than burying them in consecrated ground.

7. After Guy Fawkes was executed, an Act of parliament was passed to mark the date as a day of thanksgiving for the 'joyful deliverance of King James I'. The act remained in force for 254 years until 1859.

8. St. Peter's School in York reportedly makes a point of never burning a guy. Guy Fawkes went there as a boy and it is said to refuse to burn his image in respect for its former pupil. There is, however, a long tradition of a fireworks display for the pupils.

9. Research from the Institute of Physics has found that had Guy Fawkes been successful on 5 November 1605 the blast would have covered a 500-metre radius – from St. James's Park to the London Eye. However, other scientists have claimed that the gunpowder had decayed and would not have gone off even if lit.

10. The cellars of the Houses of Parliament are still searched by the Yeoman of the Guard before the state opening – held in November each year since 1928 – to check for modern-day gunpowder plotters.

11. Despite being involved in a terrorist plot, Guy Fawkes was named the 30th Greatest Briton in a poll conducted by the BBC in 2002.

12. Guy Fawkes has an uninhabited island to the north of Santa Cruz Island in the Galapagos named after him.

13. The word 'guy' as a synonym for 'man' is believed to originate from Guy Fawkes. It originally meant 'an ugly, repulsive person' before falling into more common use.

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