Popish Plot
Encyclopedia
Titus Oates
Titus Oates was an English perjurer who fabricated the "Popish Plot", a supposed Catholic conspiracy to kill King Charles II.-Early life:...
that gripped England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, Wales
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
and Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
in Anti-Catholic
Anti-Catholicism in the United Kingdom
Institutional Anti-Catholicism in the United Kingdom has its origins in the English and Irish Reformations under Henry VIII and the Scottish Reformation led by John Knox...
hysteria between 1678 and 1681. Oates alleged that there existed an extensive Catholic conspiracy to assassinate Charles II
Charles II of England
Charles II was monarch of the three kingdoms of England, Scotland, and Ireland.Charles II's father, King Charles I, was executed at Whitehall on 30 January 1649, at the climax of the English Civil War...
, accusations that led to the execution of at least 15 men and precipitated the Exclusion Bill
Exclusion Bill
The Exclusion Crisis ran from 1678 through 1681 in the reign of Charles II of England. The Exclusion Bill sought to exclude the king's brother and heir presumptive, James, Duke of York, from the thrones of England, Scotland and Ireland because he was Roman Catholic...
Crisis. Eventually Oates' intricate web of accusations fell apart, leading to his arrest and conviction for perjury
Perjury
Perjury, also known as forswearing, is the willful act of swearing a false oath or affirmation to tell the truth, whether spoken or in writing, concerning matters material to a judicial proceeding. That is, the witness falsely promises to tell the truth about matters which affect the outcome of the...
.
Background
The fictitious Popish Plot was exacerbated by many historical events in the sixteenth century and was only believed because circumstances before 1687 had increased anti-Catholic sentiment among the mostly Protestant population of England. Anti-Catholic fears are observed as early as 1533 with the English ReformationEnglish Reformation
The English Reformation was the series of events in 16th-century England by which the Church of England broke away from the authority of the Pope and the Roman Catholic Church....
. Also, the Ridolfi plot
Ridolfi plot
The Ridolfi plot was a plot in 1570 to assassinate Queen Elizabeth I of England and replace her with Mary, Queen of Scots. The plot was hatched and planned by Roberto di Ridolfi, an international banker who was able to travel between Brussels, Rome and Madrid to gather support without attracting...
in 1571, the Babington Plot
Babington Plot
The Babington Plot was a Catholic plot in 1586 to assassinate Queen Elizabeth, a Protestant, and put Mary, Queen of Scots, a Catholic, on the English throne. It led to the execution of Mary. The long-term goal was an invasion by the Spanish forces of King Philip II and the Catholic league in...
of 1580, and the Gunpowder Plot
Gunpowder Plot
The Gunpowder Plot of 1605, in earlier centuries often called the Gunpowder Treason Plot or the Jesuit Treason, was a failed assassination attempt against King James I of England and VI of Scotland by a group of provincial English Catholics led by Robert Catesby.The plan was to blow up the House of...
of 1605 all contributed to anti-Catholic paranoia. The rule of Mary I
Mary I of England
Mary I was queen regnant of England and Ireland from July 1553 until her death.She was the only surviving child born of the ill-fated marriage of Henry VIII and his first wife Catherine of Aragon. Her younger half-brother, Edward VI, succeeded Henry in 1547...
, the attack of the Spanish Armada
Spanish Armada
This article refers to the Battle of Gravelines, for the modern navy of Spain, see Spanish NavyThe Spanish Armada was the Spanish fleet that sailed against England under the command of the Duke of Medina Sidonia in 1588, with the intention of overthrowing Elizabeth I of England to stop English...
, and the Great Fire of London
Great Fire of London
The Great Fire of London was a major conflagration that swept through the central parts of the English city of London, from Sunday, 2 September to Wednesday, 5 September 1666. The fire gutted the medieval City of London inside the old Roman City Wall...
in 1666 were other events that were important contributors to anti-Catholic sentiment and intensified Protestant hatred of Catholics, making the plot against Charles II seem believable.
English Reformation
During the English ReformationEnglish Reformation
The English Reformation was the series of events in 16th-century England by which the Church of England broke away from the authority of the Pope and the Roman Catholic Church....
(1533–1540), King Henry VIII took control over the Church in England, causing religious tension between English Catholics
Catholicism
Catholicism is a broad term for the body of the Catholic faith, its theologies and doctrines, its liturgical, ethical, spiritual, and behavioral characteristics, as well as a religious people as a whole....
and the Protestant Church of England
Church of England
The Church of England is the officially established Christian church in England and the Mother Church of the worldwide Anglican Communion. The church considers itself within the tradition of Western Christianity and dates its formal establishment principally to the mission to England by St...
. Henry VIII broke away from the Bishop of Rome mostly because he wanted an annulment of his marriage to Catherine of Aragon
Catherine of Aragon
Catherine of Aragon , also known as Katherine or Katharine, was Queen consort of England as the first wife of King Henry VIII of England and Princess of Wales as the wife to Arthur, Prince of Wales...
, which the pope would not grant.
Mary I
Mary IMary I
Mary I or Maria I may refer to:*Maria, Queen of Sicily *Mary, Queen of Hungary *Mary I of England , often called "Bloody Mary"*Mary, Queen of Scots *Mary I of Portugal...
(1553–1558), daughter of Catherine and Henry was a Catholic and sought to return the Church in England to union with the Holy See
Holy See
The Holy See is the episcopal jurisdiction of the Catholic Church in Rome, in which its Bishop is commonly known as the Pope. It is the preeminent episcopal see of the Catholic Church, forming the central government of the Church. As such, diplomatically, and in other spheres the Holy See acts and...
. During her three-year rule, some three hundred Protestants were executed. Protestants would forever remember her rule and as John Kenyon remarks, “Nor was there any doubt as to what would happen if Catholics seized control: all good Protestants would burn.” The persecution she had initiated always lurked in the back of Enlightenment minds.
The Ridolfi Plot
In 1571, Roberto di RidolfiRoberto di Ridolfi
Roberto Ridolfi was an Italian and Florentine nobleman and conspirator.Ridolfi belonged to a famous family of Florence, where he was born...
, an ardent Catholic, plotted to overthrow Queen Elizabeth I of England
Elizabeth I of England
Elizabeth I was queen regnant of England and Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death. Sometimes called The Virgin Queen, Gloriana, or Good Queen Bess, Elizabeth was the fifth and last monarch of the Tudor dynasty...
and replace her with Mary Queen of Scots. He believed that there was a need for foreign intervention to restore Catholicism and bring Mary to the throne. Ridolfi was involved in the failed Northern Rebellion. After the failure, Ridolfi realised that foreign assistance was needed to overthrow the Elizabeth. He found assistance in the Bishop of Ross
Bishop of Ross
The Bishop of Ross was the ecclesiastical head of the Diocese of Ross, one of Scotland's 13 medieval bishoprics. The first recorded bishop appears in the late 7th century as a witness to Adomnán of Iona's Cáin Adomnáin. The bishopric was based at the settlement of Rosemarkie until the mid-13th...
and Thomas Howard, 4th Duke of Norfolk
Thomas Howard, 4th Duke of Norfolk
Thomas Howard, 4th Duke of Norfolk, KG, Earl Marshal was an English nobleman.Norfolk was the son of the poet Henry Howard, Earl of Surrey. He was taught as a child by John Foxe, the Protestant martyrologist, who remained a lifelong recipient of Norfolk's patronage...
. They planned to have the Duke of Alba invade England with 10,000 men and assassinate Elizabeth I. Unfortunately, the plot was discovered and the Duke of Norfolk
Duke of Norfolk
The Duke of Norfolk is the premier duke in the peerage of England, and also, as Earl of Arundel, the premier earl. The Duke of Norfolk is, moreover, the Earl Marshal and hereditary Marshal of England. The seat of the Duke of Norfolk is Arundel Castle in Sussex, although the title refers to the...
was arrested and later executed. Elizabeth spared Mary (who was living in England, having fled the Scottish Reformation
Scottish Reformation
The Scottish Reformation was Scotland's formal break with the Papacy in 1560, and the events surrounding this. It was part of the wider European Protestant Reformation; and in Scotland's case culminated ecclesiastically in the re-establishment of the church along Reformed lines, and politically in...
, even though she believed she was involved. Ridolfi was out of town when the plot was discovered and never returned to England; therefore he was unpunished.
The Babington Plot
The Babington Plot (1586) was aimed at displacing Elizabeth I and put Mary Queen of Scots on the throne. Anthony BabingtonAnthony Babington
Anthony Babington was convicted of plotting the assassination of Elizabeth I of England and conspiring with the imprisoned Mary, Queen of Scots...
, a Catholic nobleman, was the key conspirator and devoted his life to returning England to Catholicism. He plotted with other Catholic Englishmen and King Phillip II of Spain to rescue Mary from prison and place her on the throne. Babington met John Ballard
John Ballard
John Ballard was an English Jesuit priest executed for being involved in an attempt to assassinate Queen Elizabeth I of England in the Babington Plot.John Ballard was the son of William Ballard of Wratting, Suffolk...
, a Jesuit priest
Presbyter
Presbyter in the New Testament refers to a leader in local Christian congregations, then a synonym of episkopos...
who put Babington in charge of organising English Catholics. Babington started corresponding with Mary through ciphered letters. However, their letters were being intercepted by Elizabeth’s spies and, in 1586, a letter sent by Babington outlining the details of the plot was decoded. Ballard, Babington and six others were arrested while Mary was sentenced to death for her involvement and was beheaded on February 8, 1587.
The Spanish Armada
In 1588, a Spanish fleet sailed against England because Phillip II of Spain deemed Elizabeth to be an illegitimate ruler of England. Elizabeth had further angered Phillip by her support of the Dutch RevoltDutch Revolt
The Dutch Revolt or the Revolt of the Netherlands This article adopts 1568 as the starting date of the war, as this was the year of the first battles between armies. However, since there is a long period of Protestant vs...
that advocated the advance of Protestantism in the Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
, at that time a Spanish possession. The Spanish Armada was repulsed, which gave encouragment to the Protestants throughout Europe,because they thought that God was supportive of Protestantism.
The Gunpowder Plot
The Gunpowder PlotGunpowder Plot
The Gunpowder Plot of 1605, in earlier centuries often called the Gunpowder Treason Plot or the Jesuit Treason, was a failed assassination attempt against King James I of England and VI of Scotland by a group of provincial English Catholics led by Robert Catesby.The plan was to blow up the House of...
was an attempted assassination of King James I. The plan was to blow up the House of Lords
House of Lords
The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster....
during the state opening of Parliament on November 5, 1605 and install James’ Catholic daughter Elizabeth as monarch. Guy Fawkes
Guy Fawkes
Guy Fawkes , also known as Guido Fawkes, the name he adopted while fighting for the Spanish in the Low Countries, belonged to a group of provincial English Catholics who planned the failed Gunpowder Plot of 1605.Fawkes was born and educated in York...
was in charge of the explosives and was discovered the night before the attack guarding 36 barrels of gunpowder. This was an actual plot and so that made the fabricated Popish Plot of 1687 more believable. The Jesuits became scapegoats after this incident.
The Great Fire of 1666
When the Great Fire of LondonGreat Fire of London
The Great Fire of London was a major conflagration that swept through the central parts of the English city of London, from Sunday, 2 September to Wednesday, 5 September 1666. The fire gutted the medieval City of London inside the old Roman City Wall...
occurred in 1666, rumors floating around about arson and the first to be blamed were Catholics, especially the Jesuits. Kenyon remarks, “At Coventry, the townspeople were possessed by the idea that the papists were about to rise and cut their throats….” Kenyon also comments, “A nationwide panic seemed likely, and as homeless refugees poured out from London into the countryside, they took with them stories of a kind which were familiar to them in 1678 and 1679.”
All of these previous historical events influenced the Popish Plot’s believability because there was a growing fear by Protestants of increasing Catholic influence in England. Further, Charles' heir, his brother James Stuart, Duke of York
James II of England
James II & VII was King of England and King of Ireland as James II and King of Scotland as James VII, from 6 February 1685. He was the last Catholic monarch to reign over the Kingdoms of England, Scotland, and Ireland...
had embraced Catholicism, and the King's wife, Catherine of Braganza
Catherine of Braganza
Catherine of Braganza was a Portuguese infanta and queen consort of England, Scotland and Ireland as the wife of King Charles II.She married the king in 1662...
, was also Catholic. Charles' wars and religious policies during the 1670s led to conflict with parliament. In 1672, Charles issued the Royal Declaration of Indulgence
Royal Declaration of Indulgence
The Royal Declaration of Indulgence was Charles II of England's attempt to extend religious liberty to Protestant nonconformists and Roman Catholics in his realms, by suspending the execution of the penal laws that punished recusants from the Church of England...
, in which he purported to suspend all penal law
Penal law
In the most general sense, penal is the body of laws that are enforced by the State in its own name and impose penalties for their violation, as opposed to civil law that seeks to redress private wrongs...
s against Catholics and other religious dissenters.
Charles II did not want to share power, but he was financially reliant on Parliament. He believed that an alliance with Catholic France would provide money and aid him in becoming absolute monarch. As the power of the Cabal Ministry
Cabal Ministry
The Cabal Ministry refers to a group of high councillers of King Charles II of England, Scotland and Ireland from 1668 to circa 1674.The term "Cabal" has a double meaning in this context. It refers to the fact that, for perhaps the first time in English history, effective power in a royal council...
waned Thomas Osborne, Lord Danby
Thomas Osborne, 1st Duke of Leeds
Thomas Osborne, 1st Duke of Leeds, KG , English statesman , served in a variety of offices under Kings Charles II and William III of England.-Early life, 1632–1674:The son of Sir Edward Osborne, Bart., of Kiveton, Yorkshire, Thomas Osborne...
assumed more influence in his role as Lord High Treasurer
Lord High Treasurer
The post of Lord High Treasurer or Lord Treasurer was an English government position and has been a British government position since the Act of Union of 1707. A holder of the post would be the third highest ranked Great Officer of State, below the Lord High Chancellor and above the Lord President...
. Danby sought to divert the Charles from a Francophile foreign policy.
In December 1677 an anonymous pamphlet (possibly by Andrew Marvell
Andrew Marvell
Andrew Marvell was an English metaphysical poet, Parliamentarian, and the son of a Church of England clergyman . As a metaphysical poet, he is associated with John Donne and George Herbert...
) spread alarm in London by suggesting that the Pope planned to change the lawful government of England.
Plot
The fictitious Popish Plot unfolded in a very peculiar fashion. Oates and Israel TongeIsrael Tonge
Israel Tonge , aka Ezerel or Ezreel Tongue, was an English divine and an informer in the "Popish" plot. He was born at Tickhill, near Doncaster, the son of Henry Tongue, minister of Holtby, Yorkshire...
had written a large manuscript that accused the Catholic Church authorities of approving the assassination of Charles II. The Jesuits in England were to carry out the task. The manuscript also named nearly 100 Jesuits and supporters, supposedly involved in this assassination plot; nothing in the document was ever proven to be true.
Oates slipped a copy of the manuscript into the wainscot
Wainscot
Wainscot is a term used in fantasy fiction to describe societies that are concealed and secretly working in the real world. It was first coined by The Encyclopedia of Fantasy in 1997....
of a gallery in Sir Richard Barker's house. The following day Tonge claimed to find the manuscript, and showed it to an acquaintance, Christopher Kirkby, who was shocked and decided to inform the King. Kirkby was a chemist and a former assistant in Charles's scientific experiments. On 13 August 1678, whilst Charles was out walking in St. James's Park
St. James's Park
St. James's Park is a 23 hectare park in the City of Westminster, central London - the oldest of the Royal Parks of London. The park lies at the southernmost tip of the St. James's area, which was named after a leper hospital dedicated to St. James the Less.- Geographical location :St. James's...
, the chemist informed him of the plot. Charles was dismissive but Kirkby stated that he knew the names of assassins who planned to shoot the King and, if that failed, the Queen's physician, Sir George Wakeman, would poison him. When the King demanded proof, the chemist offered to bring Tonge who knew of these matters personally. Charles told Kirkby to present Tonge before Danby. Tonge then lied to Danby, saying that he had found the manuscript but did not know the author.
Danby advised the King to order an investigation. Charles II denied the request, maintaining that the entire affair was absurd. He told Danby to keep the events secret so as not to put the idea of regicide
Regicide
The broad definition of regicide is the deliberate killing of a monarch, or the person responsible for the killing of a monarch. In a narrower sense, in the British tradition, it refers to the judicial execution of a king after a trial...
into people's minds. However, word of the manuscript spread to the Duke of York, who publicly called for an investigation into the matter. During the investigation, Oates' name arose.
On 6 September Oates was summoned before the magistrate Sir Edmund Berry Godfrey
Edmund Berry Godfrey
Sir Edmund Berry Godfrey was an English magistrate whose mysterious death caused anti-Catholic uproar in England...
to swear an oath prior to his testimony before the King. Oates claimed he had been at a Jesuit meeting held at the White Horse Tavern in the Strand, London
Strand, London
Strand is a street in the City of Westminster, London, England. The street is just over three-quarters of a mile long. It currently starts at Trafalgar Square and runs east to join Fleet Street at Temple Bar, which marks the boundary of the City of London at this point, though its historical length...
on April 24, 1678. According to Oates, the purpose of that meeting was to discuss the assassination of Charles II
Charles II of England
Charles II was monarch of the three kingdoms of England, Scotland, and Ireland.Charles II's father, King Charles I, was executed at Whitehall on 30 January 1649, at the climax of the English Civil War...
. The meeting discussed a variety of methods which included: stabbing by Irish ruffians, shooting by two Jesuit soldiers, or poisoning by the Queen's physician, Sir George Wakeman.
Oates and Tonge were brought before the Privy Council
Privy council
A privy council is a body that advises the head of state of a nation, typically, but not always, in the context of a monarchic government. The word "privy" means "private" or "secret"; thus, a privy council was originally a committee of the monarch's closest advisors to give confidential advice on...
later that month. The council interrogated Oates. On 28 September he made 43 allegations against various members of Catholic religious order
Religious order
A religious order is a lineage of communities and organizations of people who live in some way set apart from society in accordance with their specific religious devotion, usually characterized by the principles of its founder's religious practice. The order is composed of initiates and, in some...
s—including 541 Jesuits—and numerous Catholic nobles. He accused Sir George Wakeman
George Wakeman
Sir George Wakeman was an English royal physician to Catherine of Braganza, Consort of Charles II of England. In 1678, he was perjured by Titus Oates, who had gained backing of Thomas Osborne, 1st Earl of Danby, highly placed in government...
, the Queen's physician, and Edward Colman
Edward Colman
Edward Colman or Coleman was an English Catholic courtier under Charles II of England. He was hanged, drawn and quartered on a treason charge, having been implicated by Titus Oates in his false accusations concerning a Popish Plot...
, the secretary to the Duchess of York
Duchess of York
Duchess of York is the principal courtesy title held by the wife of the Duke of York. The title is gained with marriage alone and is forfeited upon divorce. Four of the twelve Dukes of York did not marry or had already assumed the throne prior to marriage, therefore there have only ever been eleven...
(Mary of Modena
Mary of Modena
Mary of Modena was Queen consort of England, Scotland and Ireland as the second wife of King James II and VII. A devout Catholic, Mary became, in 1673, the second wife of James, Duke of York, who later succeeded his older brother Charles II as King James II...
), of planning the assassination. Although Oates may have selected the names randomly, or with the help of the Earl of Danby, Coleman was found to have corresponded with a French Jesuit, which condemned him. Wakeman was later acquitted.
Others Oates accused included Dr. William Fogarty, Archbishop Peter Talbot
Archbishop Peter Talbot
Peter Talbot was the Roman Catholic Archbishop of Dublin from 1669 to his death.- Early life :Talbot was born at Malahide, County Dublin, Ireland, in 1620. At an early age he entered the Society of Jesus in Portugal. He was ordained a priest at Rome, and for some years thereafter held the chair...
of Dublin, Samuel Pepys
Samuel Pepys
Samuel Pepys FRS, MP, JP, was an English naval administrator and Member of Parliament who is now most famous for the diary he kept for a decade while still a relatively young man...
, and Lord Belasyse
John Belasyse, 1st Baron Belasyse
John Belasyse, 1st Baron Belasyse PC was an English nobleman, soldier and Member of Parliament, notable for his role during and after the English Civil War.-Early life:...
. With the help of Danby the list grew to 81 accusations. Oates was given a squad of soldiers and he began to round up Jesuits.
Godfrey murder
The allegations gained little credence until the murder of Sir Edmund Berry Godfrey, a member of Parliament and strong supporter of Protestantism. His disappearance on 12 October 1678, the finding of his body on 17 October, and the subsequent failure to solve his murder sent the Protestant population into an uproar. He had been strangled and run through with his own sword. Many of his supporters blamed the murder on Catholics. As Kenyon commented, “Next day, the 18th, James wrote to William of Orange that Godfrey’s death was already ‘laid against the Catholics’, and even he, never the most realistic of men, feared that ‘all these things happening together will cause a great flame in the Parliament.’” The Lords asked King Charles to banish all Catholics from a radius of 20 miles around London, which Charles granted on October 30th, 1678, but it was too late because London was already in a panic.Oates seized on this murder as proof that the Plot was true. The murder of Godfrey and the discovery of Edward Coleman’s letters provided a solid basis of facts for the lies of Oates and the other informers who followed him. Oates was called to testify before the House of Lords and the House of Commons
House of Commons of England
The House of Commons of England was the lower house of the Parliament of England from its development in the 14th century to the union of England and Scotland in 1707, when it was replaced by the House of Commons of Great Britain...
on October 23, 1678. He testified that he had seen a number of contracts signed by the Superior General of the Jesuits. The contracts appointed officers that would command an army of Catholic supporters to kill Charles II and establish a Catholic monarch. To this day, no one is certain who killed Sir Edmund Godfrey.
King Charles, aware of the unrest, returned to London and summoned Parliament. He remained unconvinced by Oates' accusations, but Parliament and public opinion forced him to order an investigation. Parliament truly believed that this plot was real, declaring, “ This House is of opinion that there hath been and still is a damnable and hellish plot contrived and carried out by the popish recusants for assigning and murdering the King.” Tonges was called to testify on October 25th, 1678 where he gave evidence on the Great Fire and, later, rumours of another similar plot. On November 1st, both Houses ordered an investigation in which a Frenchman, Choqueux, was discovered to be storing gunpowder in a house nearby. It was later uncovered that he was simply the King’s firework maker.
Trial of the Five Catholic Lords
Oates became more daring and accused five Catholic lords (The Earl of PowisWilliam Herbert, 1st Marquess of Powis
William Herbert, 1st Marquess of Powis, PC was an English nobleman.He succeeded his father, the 2nd Baron Powis, as 3rd Baron Powis in 1667, and was created Earl of Powis in 1674 by King Charles II and Viscount Montgomery, of the Town of Montgomery, and Marquess of Powis in 1687 by King James II,...
, The Viscount Stafford
William Howard, 1st Viscount Stafford
Blessed William Howard, 1st Viscount Stafford was the youngest son of Thomas Howard, 21st Earl of Arundel, and his wife, the former Alethea Talbot. He was a supporter of the Royalist cause before being implicated in the Popish Plot and executed for treason...
, The Lord Arundell of Wardour
Henry Arundell, 3rd Baron Arundell of Wardour
Henry Arundell, 3rd Baron Arundell of Wardour, PC was a Peer of England during the 17th century, and the most famous of the Lords Arundell of Wardour. He served as Lord Privy Seal and Lord High Steward, and was appointed to the Privy Council...
, The Lord Petre
William Petre, 4th Baron Petre
William Petre, 4th Baron Petre was an English peer, a victim of the Popish Plot.Petre was the eldest son of Robert Petre, third Baron Petre , and Mary , daughter of Anthony-Maria Browne, second Viscount Montagu, who had been arrested in connection with the Gunpowder Plot in 1605.Petre was openly a...
and The Lord Belasyse
John Belasyse, 1st Baron Belasyse
John Belasyse, 1st Baron Belasyse PC was an English nobleman, soldier and Member of Parliament, notable for his role during and after the English Civil War.-Early life:...
) of involvement in the plot. The King reputedly dismissed the accusations, but the Earl of Shaftesbury had the lords arrested and sent to the Tower
Tower of London
Her Majesty's Royal Palace and Fortress, more commonly known as the Tower of London, is a historic castle on the north bank of the River Thames in central London, England. It lies within the London Borough of Tower Hamlets, separated from the eastern edge of the City of London by the open space...
. Seizing upon the anti-Catholic tide, Shaftesbury publicly demanded that the King's brother, James, be excluded from the royal succession, prompting the Exclusion crisis. On 5 November 1678, people burned effigies of the Pope
Pope
The Pope is the Bishop of Rome, a position that makes him the leader of the worldwide Catholic Church . In the Catholic Church, the Pope is regarded as the successor of Saint Peter, the Apostle...
instead of those of Guy Fawkes
Guy Fawkes
Guy Fawkes , also known as Guido Fawkes, the name he adopted while fighting for the Spanish in the Low Countries, belonged to a group of provincial English Catholics who planned the failed Gunpowder Plot of 1605.Fawkes was born and educated in York...
. At the end of the year, the parliament passed a bill, a second Test Act
Test Act
The Test Acts were a series of English penal laws that served as a religious test for public office and imposed various civil disabilities on Roman Catholics and Nonconformists...
, excluding Catholics from membership of both Houses (a law not repealed until 1829).
On 25 October 1678 the Lords Arundell, Stafford, Powis, Petre, and Belasyse were arrested and committed to the Tower. On 1 November the House of Commons resolved to proceed by impeachment against "the five popish lords". On 23 November all Arundell's papers were seized and examined by the Lords' committee; on 3 December the five peers were found guilty of high treason; and on 5 December the Commons announced the impeachment of Arundell. A month later Parliament was dissolved, and the proceedings were interrupted. In March 1679, it was resolved by both houses that the dissolution had not invalidated the motions for the impeachment. On 10 April 1679 Arundell and three of his companions (Belasyse was too ill to attend) were brought to the House of Lords to put in pleas against the articles of impeachment. Arundell complained of the uncertainty of the charges, and implored the peers to have them "reduced to competent certainty". But this plea was on 24 April voted irregular, and on 26 April the prisoners were again brought to the House of Lords and ordered to amend their pleas. Arundell replied by briefly declaring himself not guilty. The trial was fixed for 13 May, but a quarrel between the two houses as to points of procedure, and the legality of admitting bishops to a capital trial, followed by a dissolution, delayed its commencement till 30 November 1680. On that day it was decided to proceed first against Lord Stafford, who was condemned to death on 7 December and beheaded on 29 December. On 30 December the evidence against Arundell and his three fellow-prisoners was ordered to be in readiness, but there public proceedings stopped. Petre died in the Tower in 1683. His companions remained there till 12 February 1684 when an appeal to the court of King's Bench to release them on bail was successful. On 21 May 1685 Arundell, Powis, and Belasyse came to the House of Lords to present petitions for the annulling of the charges and on the following day the petitions were granted. On 1 June 1685 their liberty was formally assured on the ground that the witnesses against them had perjured themselves, and on 4 June the bill of attainder
Bill of attainder
A bill of attainder is an act of a legislature declaring a person or group of persons guilty of some crime and punishing them without benefit of a judicial trial.-English law:...
against Stafford was reversed.
Other accusations
On 24 November, Oates claimed the Queen was working with the King's physician to poison him and enlisted the aid of "Captain" William BedloeWilliam Bedloe
William Bedloe was an English fraudster and informer, born at Chepstow.He appears to have been well educated; he was certainly clever, and after moving to London in 1670 he became acquainted with some Jesuits and was occasionally employed by them...
. The King personally interrogated Oates, caught him out in a number of inaccuracies and lies, and ordered his arrest. However, a few days later, with the threat of constitutional crisis, Parliament forced the release of Oates.
Hysteria continued. Noblewomen carried firearms if they had to venture outdoors at night. Houses were searched for hidden guns, mostly without any significant result. Some Catholic widows tried to ensure their safety by marrying Anglican widowers. The House of Commons was searched—without result—in the expectation of a second Gunpowder Plot
Gunpowder Plot
The Gunpowder Plot of 1605, in earlier centuries often called the Gunpowder Treason Plot or the Jesuit Treason, was a failed assassination attempt against King James I of England and VI of Scotland by a group of provincial English Catholics led by Robert Catesby.The plan was to blow up the House of...
being perpetrated.
Anyone even suspected of being Catholic was driven out of London and forbidden to be within ten miles of the city. Oates, for his part, received a state apartment in Whitehall
Whitehall
Whitehall is a road in Westminster, in London, England. It is the main artery running north from Parliament Square, towards Charing Cross at the southern end of Trafalgar Square...
and an annual allowance. He soon presented new allegations, claimimg assassins intended to shoot the King with silver bullets so the wound would not heal. The public invented their own stories, including a tale that the sound of digging had been heard near the House of Commons and rumours of a French invasion in the Isle of Purbeck
Isle of Purbeck
The Isle of Purbeck, not a true island but a peninsula, is in the county of Dorset, England. It is bordered by the English Channel to the south and east, where steep cliffs fall to the sea; and by the marshy lands of the River Frome and Poole Harbour to the north. Its western boundary is less well...
.
However, public opinion began to turn against Oates. Having had at least 15 innocent men executed, the last being Oliver Plunkett
Oliver Plunkett
Saint Oliver Plunkett was the Roman Catholic Archbishop of Armagh and Primate of All Ireland....
, Archbishop of Armagh on 1 July 1681. The Chief Justice
Lord Chief Justice of England and Wales
The Lord Chief Justice of England and Wales is the head of the judiciary and President of the Courts of England and Wales. Historically, he was the second-highest judge of the Courts of England and Wales, after the Lord Chancellor, but that changed as a result of the Constitutional Reform Act 2005,...
, William Scroggs
William Scroggs
Sir William Scroggs , Lord Chief Justice of England, was the son of an Oxford landowner; an account of him being the son of a butcher of sufficient means to give his son a university education is merely a rumour....
began to declare people innocent and the King began to devise countermeasures.
On 31 August 1681, Oates was told to leave his apartments in Whitehall, but remained undeterred and even denounced the King and the Duke of York.. He was arrested for sedition
Sedition
In law, sedition is overt conduct, such as speech and organization, that is deemed by the legal authority to tend toward insurrection against the established order. Sedition often includes subversion of a constitution and incitement of discontent to lawful authority. Sedition may include any...
, sentenced to a fine of £100,000 and thrown into prison.
When James II
James II of England
James II & VII was King of England and King of Ireland as James II and King of Scotland as James VII, from 6 February 1685. He was the last Catholic monarch to reign over the Kingdoms of England, Scotland, and Ireland...
acceded to the throne in 1685 he had Oates retried for perjury. Oates was subsequently sentenced to be stripped of clerical dress, imprisoned for life and pilloried
Pillory
The pillory was a device made of a wooden or metal framework erected on a post, with holes for securing the head and hands, formerly used for punishment by public humiliation and often further physical abuse, sometimes lethal...
and whipped on an annual basis. Oates spent the next three years in prison. At the accession of William of Orange
William III of England
William III & II was a sovereign Prince of Orange of the House of Orange-Nassau by birth. From 1672 he governed as Stadtholder William III of Orange over Holland, Zeeland, Utrecht, Guelders, and Overijssel of the Dutch Republic. From 1689 he reigned as William III over England and Ireland...
and Mary
Mary II of England
Mary II was joint Sovereign of England, Scotland, and Ireland with her husband and first cousin, William III and II, from 1689 until her death. William and Mary, both Protestants, became king and queen regnant, respectively, following the Glorious Revolution, which resulted in the deposition of...
in 1689, he was pardoned and granted a pension of £260 a year but his reputation did not recover. The pension was suspended, but in 1698 was restored and increased to £300 a year. Oates died on 12 or 13 July 1705.
Long-term effects of the Plot
The Society of JesusSociety of Jesus
The Society of Jesus is a Catholic male religious order that follows the teachings of the Catholic Church. The members are called Jesuits, and are also known colloquially as "God's Army" and as "The Company," these being references to founder Ignatius of Loyola's military background and a...
suffered the most between 1678 and 1681. During this period, nine Jesuits were executed and twelve were died in prison. Three other deaths were also attributable to the plot. They also lost Combe
Combe
-English place names:* Combe, Berkshire* Combe, Buckfastleigh, Devon* Combe, Yealmpton, Devon* Combe, Herefordshire* Combe, Oxfordshire* Combe, Somerset-Places in England with combe as one word in part of their name:Cumbria* Black CombeDevon...
in Herefordshire
Herefordshire
Herefordshire is a historic and ceremonial county in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes it is a NUTS 3 region and is one of three counties that comprise the "Herefordshire, Worcestershire and Gloucestershire" NUTS 2 region. It also forms a unitary district known as the...
, which was the Jesuit headquarters of South Wales. A quote from French Jesuit Claude de la Colombiere
Claude de la Colombière
Saint Claude de la Colombière was a Roman Catholic priest and the confessor of Saint Margaret Mary Alacoque. His feast day is the day of his death, 15 February...
highlights the plight of the Jesuits during this time period. He comments, “The name of the Jesuit is hated above all else, even by priests both secular and regular, and by the Catholic laity as well, because it is said that the Jesuits have caused this raging storm, which is likely to overthrow the whole Catholic religion.”
Other Catholic religious orders such as the Carmelites
Carmelites
The Order of the Brothers of Our Lady of Mount Carmel or Carmelites is a Catholic religious order perhaps founded in the 12th century on Mount Carmel, hence its name. However, historical records about its origin remain uncertain...
, Franciscans, and the Benedictines were also affected by the fictitious plot. They were no longer permitted to have more than a certain number of members or missions within England. John Kenyon points out that European religious orders throughout the Continent were affected by the plot since many of them depended on the alms of the English Catholic community for their existence. Many Catholic priests were arrested and tried because the Privy Council wanted to make sure to catch all of those who might possess information about the plot.
The fictitious plot had consequences for ordinary British Catholics. On October 30, 1687, a proclamation was made that required all Catholics who were not tradesmen or property owners to leave London and Westminster. They were not to enter a twelve-mile radius of the city without special permission. Throughout this period Catholics were subject to fines, harassment and imprisonment. It was not until the early 19th century that the vestiges of anti-Catholic prejudice were removed by the Catholic Relief Act of 1829, although anti-Catholic sentiment remained among politicians and the general populace.