On the 5th of November 1605 a man named Guy Fawkes was found in the cellars underneath the English houses of Parliament. Fawkes was standing guard, ready to light the fuse of around 36 barrels of gunpowder. After his arrest it was discovered that Fawkes and around 13 others had planned to blow up parliament to kill King James I in hope to save the lives of many Catholics throughout the United Kingdom. Fawkes was even brought before the King Who asked him why he wanted him dead? Fawkes, who gave his name as 'John Johnson' at the time of arrest, replied in a low voice "to blow a Scotsman back to Scotland".
King James I was the son of Mary Queen of Scots, a Roman catholic who ended up being forced to abdicate the thrown to her infant son, James I. James didn't actually take control of the thrown until many years later. During his reign he became allies with Elizabeth I under the Treaty of Berwick. Elizabeth was a well known protestant ruler who had become enemies with her cousin Mary during their reigns. Elizabeth ordered the execution of her cousin in March of 1587 and James I did not seem to protest with much noise. This was probably due to wanting Elizabeth to name him as her successor as she had no children to pass on the throne.
In 1603 Elizabeth I died and James was now King of both England and Scotland. James proved to be an astute ruler over both lands when it came to religion and parliament. He ordered a new translation of the Bible which was used for over 250 years, but despite being seen as fairly tolerant with religious faith when it comes to the history of rulers and religion, he still managed to spark a terror plot against him. King James I believed in 'The Divine right of Kings' - that kings took authority from God and should rule over everything, both parliament and religion. But there came a point when the church had to remind him there are two Kings, King James and King Jesus.
Christopher Wright met up with Guy Fawkes in 1603 and spent time planning an invasion of England. They had hoped their connections with Spain (as Fawkes served in the Spanish Army despite being born in York, England) would aid them in this invasion plot. However, Spain were still recovering from the 1588 disaster of the Spanish Armada, making it highly unlikely that they would get involved. As word got around, Guy Fawkes was informed that a Thomas Wintour had been asking for him and they met up in Brussels where Fawkes was informed of another plot to murder the King.
The plot was planned with other conspirators over the course of a year and on the night of November 4th 1605 they moved in for the final act. Around midnight however, an anonymous letter was handed into parliament, causing Lord Chamberlain, Thomas Howard, and the Earl of Suffolk to lead a search party where they discovered Guy Fawkes in the cellars, seizing him before he could light the barrels. After torturing "John Johnson" he finally gave his real name "Guy Fawkes" and gave the names of all the other conspirators. Fawkes and the other men were sentenced to hanging, drawing and quartering, with Fawkes being the last of the conspirators to be executed. But, when it came his turn he jumped from the scaffolding and broke his neck, killing himself before he even got to the noose. Fawkes' body was still hung, drawn, and quartered after his death.
Guy Fawkes has gone down in History as the man who failed Britons "greatest" terror attack.
Parliament asked all to "remember, remember, the 5th of November" with effigies of Guy Fawkes to be burned and fireworks to be blown up in mockery of the failed attempt every November 5th.
A tradition that still reigns to this day!
What do you think would have happened if Guido Fawkes had never been caught? Comment below.
Sources:
(2018). Bonfire Night traditions: Why do we celebrate Guy Fawkes? [Online]. The Scotsman. Available at: www.scotsman.com/arts-and-culture/bonfire-night-traditions-why-do-we-celebrate-guy-fawkes-229798 (Accessed: 5 November 2021).
(2016). James I (r. 1603-1625) [Online]. The Royal Family. Available at: www.royal.uk/james-i (Accessed: 5 November 2021).
BBC [Online]. James I and VI. Available at: www.bbc.co.uk/history/historic_figures/james_i_vi.shtml (Accessed: 5 November 2021).
Just a moment... [Online]. Available at: bonfirenighttraditions.co.uk/guy/ (Accessed: 5 November 2021).
Reformation History [Online]. Available at: reformationhistory.org/jamesvi.html (Accessed: 5 November 2021).
コメント