Guy Fawkes

St Michael le Belfrey (21st October 2010) 001

Gunpowder Plot conspirators

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Guy fawkes torture signatures

The execution of Guy Fawkes' (Guy Fawkes) by Claes (Nicolaes) Jansz Visscher

Guy Fawkes (13 April 1570 – 31 January 1606), also known as Guido Fawkes while fighting for the Spanish, was a member of a group of provincial English Catholics who planned the failed Gunpowder Plot of 1605. Fawkes was born and educated in York, England. His father died when Fawkes was eight years old, after which his mother married a recusant Catholic. Fawkes converted to Catholicism and left for the continent, where he fought in the Eighty Years' War on the side of Catholic Spain against Protestant Dutch reformers.

Upon his return to England, Fawkes became involved with a small group of English Catholics led by Robert Catesby who aimed to assassinate King James I and restore a Catholic monarch to the throne. The plotters leased an undercroft beneath the House of Lords; Fawkes was placed in charge of the gunpowder they stockpiled there. However, the plot was revealed to the authorities in an anonymous letter sent to William Parker, 4th Baron Monteagle, on 26 October 1605. During a search of the House of Lords in the early hours of 5 November, Fawkes was discovered guarding the explosives. He was arrested, tortured, and later executed.

Guy Fawkes Night, also known as Guy Fawkes Day, Bonfire Night, and Firework Night, is an annual commemoration observed on 5 November, primarily in the United Kingdom. Its history begins with the events of 5 November 1605, when Guy Fawkes, a member of the Gunpowder Plot, was arrested while guarding explosives the plotters had placed beneath the House of Lords. Celebrating the fact that King James I had survived the attempt on his life, people lit bonfires around London, and months later, the introduction of the Observance of 5th November Act enforced an annual public day of thanksgiving for the plot's failure.

Early Life

Guy Fawkes was born in 1570 in York. He was the second of four children born to Edward Fawkes, a proctor and an advocate of the consistory court at York, and his wife, Edith. His parents were regular communicants of the Church of England, as were his paternal grandparents. His mother's family were recusant Catholics, and his cousin, Richard Cowling, became a Jesuit priest. Fawkes was baptised in the church of St. Michael le Belfrey, York, on 16 April 1570.

Military Career

Fawkes left England for the continent to fight for Catholic Spain in the Eighty Years' War against Protestant Dutch reformers in the Low Countries. He was given the name Guido Fawkes by the Spanish, under whom he served until 1604.

Gunpowder Plot

In 1604, after returning to England, Fawkes became involved with a group of English Catholics, led by Robert Catesby, who planned to assassinate the Protestant King James and replace him with his daughter, Princess Elizabeth. The plotters secured a lease to an undercroft beneath the House of Lords and Fawkes was placed in charge of the gunpowder they stockpiled there.

Capture and Death

Fawkes was discovered in the early hours of 5 November 1605. He was arrested, tortured, and executed by hanging, drawing, and quartering, a common punishment of the time for traitors.

Legacy

Guy Fawkes has left a lasting legacy through the annual celebration of Guy Fawkes Night on 5 November. His effigy is traditionally burned on a bonfire, commonly accompanied by fireworks.