November Facts And Traditions.

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Facts About The Month Of November.

                                                           Gemstone: Topaz.

                                                          Flower: Chrysanthemum.

The month of November gets its name from the old Roman Calendar. It was the ninth month of the year and 'novem' was the roman word for nine.

The Saxons called this month 'Wind monath' as it was the time of the year when the cold winds of the winter arrived they also called it 'Blod monath' because this was when the cattle were brought in for slaughter to provide food for the winter months.

During the first week of November many festivals and celebrations are held to mark the end or the harvest time and the start of the Winter.

November 1st is 'All Saints Day', this day was first celebrated in the year 835AD when the Roman Catholic Church made it a Church holiday to honour all the Saints. All Saints Day was also once called All Hallows ( Hallow meaning a Saint or a Holy Person. ) The feast actually begins on October 31st which is the Eve of All Hallows now called Halloween.

Important Dates.

November 1st. Today is All Saints Day the day that Christians remember all men and women of good will' ( Saints ) great ones and those forgotten who have died through the ages. Saints are men and women from all walks of life who have died for their faith or good deeds and are honoured by the church.

November 2nd. The second of November is All Souls Day, this is the day when the Roman Catholic Church remembers all those that have died weather they be great, good or the ordinary man or woman in the street.

Soul Cakes. Before the Reformation it was customary that poor Christians offered prayers to the dead in return for money or food called Soul Cakes, from their wealthier neighbours.

Souling. During the 19th and 20th centuries it was customary for children to go Souling requesting alms or soul cakes.

Souling was a practice carried out in towns and villages all around Britian many years ago and it involved a group or groups of singers ( The Soulers. ) who would go round the houses singing this song and they were often accompanied by their old friend the Hobby Horse.

The Song.

A soul, a soul, a soul cake

Please good missus a soul cake

An apple, a Pear, a Plum or Cherry

Any good things to make us merry.

Up with your kettles and down with your pans

Give us an answer and we'll be gone

Little Jack, Jack sitting on his gate

Crying for some butter to butter his cake

One for St. Peter, Two for St. Paul,

Three for the man who made us all.

All Souls' Day Superstition. It was once believed that on All Souls' night that the dead would rise up from their graves and revisit their old homes, so many people would lite candles in their windows to guide them and leave out a meal and wine to refresh them.

November 4th is Mischief Night. It was customary in some parts of the country on this night to go out Mischief Making, this involved doing all sorts of Naughty things but in the main the idea was to put things in the wrong place. In parts of Derbyshire and Yorkshire in the Mining Villages children would go out to do a bit of Jolly Minering , this was a local variation of collecting a Penny for the guy. The aim was to raise money for sweets and fireworks for Bonfire Night. While out collecting they would sing a song that started with the words;

                                         We're three jolly Miners and we're not worth a pin,

                                       So give us a piece of coal and we'll make the kettle sing.

The origin of this song dates back to an earlier time when the idea was to collect coal for the Bonfire or simply to make the Kettle sing.

November 5th. Bonfire Night or Guy Fawkes Night. This is still one of the most popular and the longest lasting of all British Customs. In 1605 an attempt was made by a group of Roman Catholics to blow up the Houses of Parliament and kill King James 1st and the Kings leaders. The plot was led by Robert Catesby amongnst the group was Guy Fawkes. After the plot failed, the King ordered that on November 5th the people of England should have a great bonfire to celebrate the survival of the attempt on his life.

                                                            Guy Fawkes Rhyme.

                                                           Remember, remember,
                                                           The 5th of November
                                                      Gunpowder, treason and plot,
                                                           We see no reason why
                                                           Gunpowder treason
                                                           Should ever be forgot.

November 11th is Martinmas Day. The feast of St. Martin is held today it was a great time for celebrations with great feasts and also more hiring fairs where farm labourers still looking for work had another chance to find employment for the next year. It was also the time of year when most farmers had completed the sowing of their Autumn wheat. In Derbyshire it was once the custom of farmers to provide a 'Cakes-and-Ale Feast' for their workers for completing the sowing of the wheat. Special cakes were made for the feast they were called Hopper Cakes.

Since 1918 the 11th of November has been commemorated as Armistice Day when people now remember the millions of soldiers who died in the two World Wars and other conflicts. The old traditions of the celebration of Martinmas have now disappeared.

On the second Saturday in November the Lord Mayor's Show takes place each year in London.

November 22nd is St. Cecilias Day. Saint Cecilias was thought to be a Roman Maiden who became a Martyr in the second or third century.

                     
Stir Up Sunday. Stir up Sunday is held on the last Sunday before Advent Day according to the Church Calendar and it is the day traditionally for making your Christmas Pudding. This was a family event and involved every member of the family giving the Christmas Pudding a stir and while doing so making a wish.

                                       
November 30th St Andrews Day. St. Andrew is the patron Saint of Scotland and is celebrated by them.


                                                   Wether Lore, Beliefs and Sayings.

      If the wind is in the south - west on St. Martins Day (11th) it will stay there right through till                                                                                                              Candlemas in February , ensuring a mild and snow free winter.
         
          'If the wind be in the north - west on Martinmas, a severe winter to come.

                                              "If the geese at Martin's Day stand on ice,
                                                 They will stand in mud at Christmas'.

                                                        "Ice beforeMartinmas,
                                                        Enough to bare a duck
                                                           The rest of winter,
                                                           Is sure to be muck".

                                          "A warm November is the sign of a bad winter".


                                                   "Flowers blooming in late Autumn
                                                     A sure sign of a bad winter comin".


                                                      "As high as the weeds grow,
                                                         So will the bank of snow".


                                                                    Anniversaries.

The 4th Thursday of the month is Thanksgiving Day in the U S A.
November 1st. All Saint's Day.
November 2nd. All Souls Day.
November 4th. King Tutankhamens Tomb was discovered in Egypt.
November 5th. Bonfire Night or Guy Fawkes Night.
November 9th. The Berlin Wall came down in 1989 between East and West Germany.
November 11th. Remembrance Day. On the 11th hour on the 11th day of the 11th month of 1918 the Great War ended.
Also Martinmas Day.
November 22nd. The feast day of St. Cecilia.
November 23rd. St. Clement's Day, the Patron Saint of Blacksmiths.
November 25th. St. Catherine's Day / Catterntide. Martyred by being broken on a  spiked wheel, her symbol became a wheel and the Catherine Wheel fireworks are named after her.
November 30th. Winston Churchill one of Britians Greatest Prime Ministers was born.
Also St. Andrews Day , The Patron Saint of Scotland.