James II bans Guy Fawkes Night – printed proclamation on a single leaf of paper dated November 6th 1685 banning Guy Fawkes night. The original foundation of the November 5th celebrations followed the uncovering of the Gunpowder Plot in 1605, but with a Catholic monarch on the throne in 1685 fears of the whole affair turning into an anti-Catholic demonstration unnerved the King so he banned it. It was ineffective however, and the celebration survives to this day.