11. The notorious and historical attempt on King James I in 1605, the Gunpowder Plot was supposed to be a mass casualty attack on Parliament and designed to incite a Catholic uprising in England
The son of Mary, Queen of Scots, James Stuart reigned as King of Scotland, as James VI, from 1567 and King of England from 1603 until his death in 1625. Born in 1566 and baptized a Catholic, James was raised as a Protestant under the Church of Scotland. Angering English Catholics hoping for an ally but instead facing persecution, the Gunpowder Plot of 1605 was supposed to ignite a popular revolt which would see James’ nine-year-old Catholic daughter, Elizabeth, placed on the throne. Organized by Robert Catesby, the design was to detonate gunpowder beneath the House of Lords during the State Opening of Parliament on November 5.
Despite meticulous planning, the plot was revealed to the authorities in an anonymous letter dated October 26. Searching the basement of the House of Lords on the evening of November 4, Guy Fawkes was discovered guarding thirty-six barrels of gunpowder. Arrested, the remaining conspirators attempted to flee London and launch the rebellion. Pursued relentlessly by the king’s men, few survived, with Catesby and his followers shot after a standoff at Holbeche House three days later. Tried for treason, Fawkes, along with eight other conspirators, were sentenced to be hung, drawn, and quartered.