If you watched the movie "V for Vendetta", then, of course, you remember the mask in which the main character appears on the screen. But not everyone knows that this mask depicts Guy Fawkes, the English folk hero, who is honored on the night of November 5. The holiday is called Guy Fawkes Night, or Bonfire Night. On the night of November 5, the whole country explodes with fireworks. It seems that the streets are blazing with fires: people march with burning torches, dragging barrels engulfed in flames and mercilessly burning effigies of objectionable politicians. But the main scarecrow that needs to be burned belongs to that very Guy Fawkes. Who is he, the hero of the occasion?
Villain or Hero?
Guy Fawkes went down in British history by nearly blowing up the British Parliament. In all seriousness. He became one of the participants in the Gunpowder Plot organized by the Catholics. The purpose of the conspiracy was to send the then reigning King James I to the next world, and at the same time all the members of parliament who were supposed to gather for a meeting on November 5, 1605. And it was Guy Fawkes who was entrusted with setting fire to the fuse, which led to the barrels of gunpowder, hidden in the basement exactly under the House of Lords. But he did not have to strike a match: late at night on November 4, Guy Fawkes was arrested right outside the basement. Unable to withstand the torture, he betrayed all the participants in the conspiracy and was executed along with them. And then parliament adopted a special decree ordering to celebrate November 5 as "a joyful day of thanksgiving for salvation." The law was repealed in 1859. However, people still continue to celebrate this holiday unofficially.
But it seems that the very personality of Guy Fawkes began to be perceived by people in a completely different way - not as a villain who encroached on the God-given person of the king, but as a fighter for workers' rights. This happened after the release of the already mentioned film "V for Vendetta" in 2006, based on the comics of the same name. The film is set in the distant future. In Great Britain, a totalitarian regime reigns, and the main character (an unknown person in a Guy Fawkes mask) acts as a fighter against this very regime and in the end blows up the parliament in front of the jubilant public.
Since then, the Guy Fawkes mask has become very popular among Internet users. And now, every time on the famous November night, crowds of young people in exactly the same masks take to the streets with posters and slogans calling for social justice.
The wicked will be punished
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Could Guy Fawkes even hope that his name - the only one who took part in the conspiracy - will remain in the memory of the people for centuries? Indeed, in fact, the role of this soldier in the events was minimal, albeit very significant. Yes, it was his hand that was supposed to light the fuse. Yes, Guy Fawkes was part of the five-man conspiracy. But he was only a performer. The idea did not belong to him. It is believed that it was first nominated by Robert Catesby, a wealthy aristocrat who led the rebels. It was he who collected the very first five of the discontented and once invited them to blow up the king to hell.
Why did Jacob I so annoy the Catholics? The fact is that, having ascended the throne, he did not live up to their expectations - he did not equalize in rights with adherents of the Anglican Church and did not even soften the restrictions imposed on Catholics by the late Elizabeth I. Gradually, the extravagant, at first glance, idea of the assassination acquired new details and new participants and as a result resulted in the preparation of a whole uprising, as a result of which the religious and political power in the country would pass to the Catholics. The plan was this; Guy Fawkes sets fire to the fuse, hurries to the waiting boat, quickly floats down the Thames to where the ship is to transport the fugitive to the Netherlands, while his comrades, who have gathered large detachments of armed militants in the provinces, immediately after the explosion move to London. and take power into their own hands. It was supposed to capture the daughter of Jacob I, young Elizabeth, proclaim her queen and assign her a regent from prominent Catholics. The plan was worked out to the smallest detail. Everything was prepared, and the conspirators were just waiting for the signal in the form of an explosion in parliament to move to London. What prevented them from realizing their plan? Yes, the usual betrayal. On the eve of the explosion, one of the members of the House of Lords received an anonymous letter in which an unknown well-wisher advised him not to go to the meeting if life is dear to him, because on that day "the wicked will be punished." The lord immediately reported the letter. And then what happened happened.to move to London. What prevented them from realizing their plan? Yes, the usual betrayal. On the eve of the explosion, one of the members of the House of Lords received an anonymous letter in which an unknown well-wisher advised him not to go to the meeting if life is dear to him, because on that day "the wicked will be punished." The lord immediately reported the letter. And then what happened happened.to move to London. What prevented them from realizing their plan? Yes, the usual betrayal. On the eve of the explosion, one of the members of the House of Lords received an anonymous letter in which an unknown well-wisher advised him not to go to the meeting if life is dear to him, because on that day "the wicked will be punished." The lord immediately reported the letter. And then what happened happened.
36 barrels of gunpowder
This is the official version of what happened. But it's not that simple. For researchers, this episode in British history is still shrouded in fog. And that's why. There are suspicions that many documents and reports of the investigation have been slightly corrected. Scientists have found that even the supreme judge himself "corrected" the testimony of the criminals if he found something "wrong" in them. The original of the main document - detailed testimony written by Thomas Winter, one of the main conspirators, disappeared altogether, and a rather dubious copy appeared in its place, supposedly a "white paper", neatly copied by Winter himself, who was actually unable to write properly, because was wounded in the right arm. As a result, the very version of the conspiracy that the whole world knows was born. And what actually happened? No one can say for sure.
But the idea was really stunning - to destroy the entire ruling elite in one fell swoop and thus radically change the system of government in the country. Boldly. Adventurous. And most importantly - almost real! Believe it or not, in those days the English parliament was hardly guarded. Imagine: its basements and lower floors were simply leased to merchants! The conspirators, under a plausible pretext, managed to agree on a sublease of one of the cellars and gradually dragged there as many as 36 barrels of gunpowder (and who would guess that the barrels are gunpowder, not herring?). And if not for that ill-fated letter from the anonymous author, the explosion would surely have taken place, and after it the whole course of the country's history could have changed. However, this did not happen. Why? Where did the fatal letter come from? And how did the royal troops manage in a very short time - within only one week - to catch all the conspirators in the country? And also: how did the whole country suddenly find out about the failed conspiracy, given the fact that in those days there was no telephone, no television, or the Internet? In a word, questions, questions …
And again my lady …
And is it possible that such a grandiose plan was born in the minds of the five not-so-prominent "smart guys" in the country? I think no. Modern researchers have come to the conclusion that at least two forces could invisibly guide the conspirators. The first is the Jesuits, whom historians call "the secret guard of the Vatican." It is known that the head of the Catesby conspiracy often communicated with the head of the English Jesuits, Henry Garnett. And the second - Robert Cecil, Earl of Salisbury, Secretary of State of England, the closest associate of King James I, kept all the actions of the conspirators under control. How can this be?
The explanations are different. Perhaps Cecil, having learned about the plans of the Catholics, decided for the time being not to take action against the enemies of the king in order to expose the entire network of the conspiracy, and at the last moment to take them red-handed. Risky, because the life of the king is at stake. But the "anonymous letter" sent on time made it possible to carry out the operation to neutralize the "bombers" more than successfully.
Where did Cecil get information about the actions of the conspirators? Of course, he had agents. And the main role, according to some researchers, in this case was played by a certain lady, just like my lady from Dumas's novel The Three Musketeers. Her name was Lady Margaret Mildmayne. She was "friends" with everyone - conspirators, Jesuits and the king's secretary of state. And she possessed colossal information that could make any of the parties happy. An extra-class spy, my lady did not leave practically any documents, and scientists managed to formulate a hypothesis about the role of this lady in the failed coup only on the basis of several personal letters and indirect indications in other documents. There is a version that the very idea of blowing up the king was suggested to Catesby by Lady Mildmayne. In one of his letters, Catesby says that he was introduced to a lady who "fiercely sympathizes with our ideas."And soon after the aforementioned acquaintance, the head of the conspirators put forward a clear plan of action, including the explosion of parliament, And who suggested this idea to my lady herself? Jesuits? What if it was Robert Cecil himself? Imagine, there is such an assumption: the Secretary of State, with the approval of King James, came up with the whole conspiracy in order to get a reason to finally deal with the Catholics once and for all …
Be that as it may, when the time came, it was not the main puppeteers who went to the chopping block, but their puppets. On January 30 and 31, 1606, in the center of London, in the courtyard of St. Paul's Cathedral, a fierce execution took place: the conspirators were not just hanged - half-dead, pulled out of the noose, they were also castrated, gutted, quartered and beheaded. Catesby escaped this terrible fate - he did not go to trial, because he died in battle, fleeing from government forces. Guy Fawkes was also "lucky": at the moment of being hanged, the conspirator, exhausted by torture, broke his neck and died instantly.
Elena GALANOVA