THE GUNPOWDER PLOT OF 1605
By
John Kiley
This material has drawn on (but not quoted from)
“The Gunpowder Plot – Terror and Faith in 1605”
by Antonia Fraser, published by
Weidenfeld and Nicolson, London, 1996 and “Gunpowder Treason and Plot”
by C Northcote Parkinson, published by
Weidenfeld and Nicolson, London, 1976. Multiple other resources have been
similarly utilised.
THE PLOT
It was daring and highly
treasonous. Assassinate the King of England and his Queen, his court, his
parliament, his judiciary and the heir to his throne. Launch a popular uprising.
Kidnap a young princess, install her as monarch, appoint a protector and later
marry her into the Catholic faith.
The planned action was in protest
over the laws of the land which discriminated against Catholics.
Thirty-six barrels of gunpowder
placed beneath the House of Lords were to be ignited on 5 November 1605 when the
King was present at the opening of parliament. A last minute intervention by
authorities prevented what would have been a devastating explosion, destroying
the entire apparatus of government.
One name, Guy
Fawkes, is indelibly associated with this attempted atrocity. In a three part
article we’ll portray the other key figures
involved and
examine the historical background to such an unprecedented act of treason.