Biography
Read about why the plotters had it in for James I, and the letter that led to their downfall. We also take a look at the gruesome executions of the foiled conspirators and reflect on why we still remember November 5.
The Basics
Fireworks displays may have become a bit ten-a-penny these days, but there was a time when they were purely reserved for one particular night of the year. And however pretty they looked, what they were celebrating was an event that reached back into the murky history of religious conflict in England.
Gunpowder Treason and Plot
In 1604, a small group of Catholics hatched a desperate plot to kill King James I during the state opening of Parliament. Their plan was to set off an explosion big enough to devastate Westminster, and to destroy the whole Protestant ruling class in a single great blast.
The Plot Discovered
On October 26, 1605, the Catholic peer, Lord Monteagle, received a mysterious anonymous letter, warning him not to attend the opening of Parliament on November 5. The letter said, "They shall receive a terrible blow this parliament and yet they shall not see who hurts them."
The Executions
On January 27, 1606, the trial of the eight surviving plotters took place in Westminster Hall before a panel of lords. Guy Fawkes, Thomas and Robert Wintour, Sir Everard Digby, Robert Keyes, Ambrose Rookwood, John Grant and Thomas Bates were all sentenced to death.
Remember, Remember…
The failure of the Gunpowder Plot was attributed to God, who had miraculously preserved England's government. It was a repeat of 1588, when the invading Spanish Armada was destroyed by storms, and medals were struck bearing the words, "God blew and they were scattered."
