By the 1700s, Bonfire Societies was starting to really come into their own but limited records from this period mean it can
be hard to trace all the goings on, though some have been recorded in local handwritten records and local lore.
1780s approx
Sometime around the 1780s, on the 5th of November, the Bonfire was burning on the green, when a Mr. Oliver approached while wearing a
huge belt which was filled with fireworks made from gunpowder from the local mills (Many of the local Firework makers used Battle Gunpowder,
as it was reported to be possibly the finest in the world). However, a spark from a nearby blazing faggot ignited the fireworks in his belt
and they exploded. He passed away almost a year later from the damage inflicted from the explosion.
1795 Approx
Around abouts 1795, the Battel Bonfire Guy Fawkes effigy was made. The head, was made from Pear wood from a local tree in the
Abbey Estate that was said to have been hit and fell during a storm. As was the custom at the time, Each year the Guy was decapitated, much like
Fawkes himself was, and the body burnt, leaving the head (and shoulders) safely behind, which would then be used the for the next years Guy. While
the paint has been touched up since then, this is the same Guys head we use today and can be seen at numerous events throughout the year or
at his current resting place in the Battle Museum