Guy Fawkes and 12 other men conspired to blow up the Houses
of Parliament on November 5th, 1605.
Who were these men?
Robert Catesby was the charismatic leader of the group of conspirators.
He had a way with people, and convinced a number of his impressionable friends
to go along with the murderous plan which would later be known as the Gunpowder
Plot. Even as problems with his plot later arose and some members expressed
doubt, Catesby remained convinced that violent action was the only way forward.
Catesby first recruited his close friends and relatives: Thomas Wintour,
Jack Wright and Thomas Percy, but the group quickly grew to include Guy
Fawkes. The small core of conspirators felt Guy would be a strong addition.
Guy was not part of the close knit circle of Catesby's small group, but he
had spent time in the Netherlands and in Spain where he had fought, many said very well, as a mercenary.
While in Spain he also earned the nickname Guido. Indeed, he even signed his
name Guido Fawkes in a number of places.
He was as passionate about the plight of the Catholics in England as his colleagues.
As a member of the group, he quickly became a trusted member, and was later charged with the dangerous task of acquiring 36 barrels of gunpowder and storing them
in a rented space beneath the House of Lords.
Soon after Fawkes' addition, others who joined the group were Robert Wintour, Christopher
(Kit) Wright, Robert Keyes, Thomas Bates. Latecomers to the group were John
Grant, Ambrose Rookwood, Francis Tresham, and Everard Digby. In all, there
were 13 conspirators in the Gunpowder Plot.
If Robert Catesby was the leader, how did Guy Fawkes
become the most famous member of the Gunpowder Plot?
Guy Fawkes was the one who was caught under the House of Lords with 36
barrels of gunpowder. For two days, Guido was the only suspect in custody
and his name became synonymous with the Powder Treason, as the Gunpowder
Plot was known at the time.
But Guy wasn't in prison alone for long. Soon, many conspirators were either
caught outright as they flew from London, or surrendered shortly thereafter.
Some, however, including the ringleader Robert Catesby, were killed in a
siege within a few days of the failed attempt.
All the conspirators who were not killed in the siege were imprisoned, tortured,
and executed in the most gruesome way (except Francis Tresham who fell sick
and died while in prison).
As is often the case with confessions made under duress, plotters admitted
to everything they knew, and most likely complemented this information with whatever
authorities wanted to hear - in hopes of ending their ordeal. The result was
questionable confessions, likely augmented by authorities for
their own purposes. These confessions incriminated
two leading English Jesuits - who, according to some historians,
were unlikely to have had any involvement in the Plot. Indeed, would most likely have
been most opposed to it. Nevertheless, the government used the Gunpowder Plot to
justify further anti-Catholic repression, including executing at least two Jesuits
leaders they felt were threatening to their authority.
All imprisonned plotters were executed publicly in March 1607. They were
"hanged, drawn, and quartered", a brutal practice which authorities
hoped would instill terror in other potential traitors.
Did public executions really function as a deterrent? Or did they simply
feed the climate of violence that encouraged Catesby and his men to pursue
their deadly aims?