139-493: Cowdray House consists of the ruins of one of England 's great Tudor houses, architecturally comparable to many of the great palaces and country houses of that time. It is situated in the parish of Easebourne , just east of Midhurst , West Sussex standing on the north bank of the River Rother . It was largely destroyed by fire on 24 September 1793, but the ruins are Grade I listed for their historical importance. The house
278-509: A Jesuit priest. Guy was an uncommon name in England, but may have been popular in York on account of a local notable, Sir Guy Fairfax of Steeton. The date of Fawkes's birth is unknown, but he was baptised in the church of St Michael le Belfrey, York on 16 April. As the customary gap between birth and baptism was three days, he was probably born about 13 April. In 1568, Edith had given birth to
417-968: A Catholic through the Baynbrigge family's recusant tendencies, and also the Catholic branches of the Pulleyn and Percy families of Scotton, but also from his time at St. Peter's School in York. A governor of the school had spent about 20 years in prison for recusancy, and its headmaster, John Pulleyn, came from a family of noted Yorkshire recusants, the Pulleyns of Blubberhouses . In her 1915 work The Pulleynes of Yorkshire , author Catharine Pullein suggested that Fawkes's Catholic education came from his Harrington relatives, who were known for harbouring priests, one of whom later accompanied Fawkes to Flanders in 1592–1593. Fawkes's fellow students included John Wright and his brother Christopher (both later involved with Fawkes in
556-511: A ceremonial county, or be a district tier within a shire county , be a royal or metropolitan borough , have borough or city status , or be a unitary authority . At the community level, much of England is divided into civil parishes with their own councils ; in Greater London only one such parish, Queen's Park , exists as of 2014 after they were abolished in 1965 until legislation allowed their recreation in 2007. From 1994 until
695-553: A daughter named Anne, but the child died aged about seven weeks, in November that year. She bore two more children after Guy: Anne (b. 1572), and Elizabeth (b. 1575). Both were married, in 1599 and 1594 respectively. In 1579, when Guy was eight years old, his father died. His mother remarried several years later, to the Catholic Dionis Baynbrigge (or Denis Bainbridge) of Scotton, Harrogate . Fawkes may have become
834-437: A day of thanksgiving for "the joyful day of deliverance", and remained in force until 1859. Fawkes was one of 13 conspirators, but he is the individual most associated with the plot. In Britain, 5 November has variously been called Guy Fawkes Night , Guy Fawkes Day, Plot Night, and Bonfire Night (which can be traced directly back to the original celebration of 5 November 1605). Bonfires were accompanied by fireworks from
973-424: A floor being put in above the kitchens, though it was not inhabited. Following the death of William Poyntz, the estate passed to his three daughters, but they could not decide how to divide the estate and it was eventually sold to George Perceval, 6th Earl of Egmont in 1843. In 1908, the 8th Earl of Egmont sold the estate to Sir Weetman Dickinson Pearson , becoming Baron Cowdray of Midhurst and later in 1917 became
1112-495: A generally sympathetic light and his novel transformed Fawkes in the public perception into an "acceptable fictional character". Fawkes subsequently appeared as "essentially an action hero" in children's books and penny dreadfuls such as The Boyhood Days of Guy Fawkes; or, The Conspirators of Old London , published around 1905. According to the historian Lewis Call , Fawkes is now "a major icon in modern political culture", whose face has become "a potentially powerful instrument for
1251-501: A geographical frame of reference. Of these, 38 developed gradually since the Middle Ages ; these were reformed to 51 in 1974 and to their current number in 1996. Each has a Lord Lieutenant and High Sheriff ; these posts are used to represent the British monarch locally. Some counties, such as Herefordshire , are only divided further into civil parishes. The royal county of Berkshire and
1390-404: A hoax". Fawkes checked the undercroft on 30 October, and reported that nothing had been disturbed. Monteagle's suspicions had been aroused, however, and the letter was shown to King James. The King ordered Sir Thomas Knyvet to conduct a search of the cellars underneath Parliament, which he did in the early hours of 5 November. Fawkes had taken up his station late on the previous night, armed with
1529-404: A horse, his head near the ground. They were to be "put to death halfway between heaven and earth as unworthy of both". Their genitals would be cut off and burnt before their eyes, and their bowels and hearts removed. They would then be decapitated, and the dismembered parts of their bodies displayed so that they might become "prey for the fowls of the air". Fawkes's and Tresham's testimony regarding
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#17330943358391668-597: A mask. During the 19th century, "guy" came to mean an oddly dressed person, while in many places it has lost any pejorative connotation and instead refers to any male person and the plural form can refer to people of any gender (as in " you guys "). James Sharpe, professor of history at the University of York, has described how Guy Fawkes came to be toasted as "the last man to enter Parliament with honest intentions". William Harrison Ainsworth 's 1841 historical romance Guy Fawkes; or, The Gunpowder Treason portrays Fawkes in
1807-643: A profound and permanent effect on the English language. Subsequently, the House of Plantagenet from Anjou inherited the English throne under Henry II , adding England to the budding Angevin Empire of fiefs the family had inherited in France including Aquitaine . They reigned for three centuries, some noted monarchs being Richard I , Edward I , Edward III and Henry V . The period saw changes in trade and legislation, including
1946-777: A separate sovereign state on 1 May 1707, when the Acts of Union brought into effect a political union with the Kingdom of Scotland that created the Kingdom of Great Britain . England is the origin of the English language , the English legal system (which served as the basis for the common law systems of many other countries), association football , and the Anglican branch of Christianity; its parliamentary system of government has been widely adopted by other nations. The Industrial Revolution began in 18th-century England, transforming its society into
2085-463: A slow match and a watch given to him by Percy "becaus he should knowe howe the time went away". He was found leaving the cellar, shortly after midnight, and arrested. Inside, the barrels of gunpowder were discovered hidden under piles of firewood and coal. Fawkes gave his name as John Johnson and was first interrogated by members of the King's Privy chamber , where he remained defiant. When asked by one of
2224-446: A struggle for hegemony between Northumbria and Mercia, which in the 8th century gave way to Mercian preeminence. In the early 9th century Mercia was displaced as the foremost kingdom by Wessex. Later in that century escalating attacks by the Danes culminated in the conquest of the north and east of England, overthrowing the kingdoms of Northumbria, Mercia and East Anglia. Wessex under Alfred
2363-417: A tunnel from beneath Whynniard's house to Parliament, although this story may have been a government fabrication; no evidence for the existence of a tunnel was presented by the prosecution, and no trace of one has ever been found; Fawkes himself did not admit the existence of such a scheme until his fifth interrogation, but even then he could not locate the tunnel. If the story is true, however, by December 1604
2502-526: A warning. In the mid-1640s, Robert May was employed as a cook at Cowdray House. During the English Civil War , two-thirds of the Cowdray estate were sequestered from Francis Browne, 3rd Viscount Montagu , and the house was garrisoned by Parliamentary forces. There are marks on the walls of the main courtyard of the house thought to be from musketballs fired by soldiers during this time. In 1770, under
2641-605: Is a non-departmental public body, established in 1995 and sponsored by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs with responsibilities relating to the protection and enhancement of the environment in England. The Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs is the minister responsible for environmental protection, agriculture, fisheries and rural communities in England. Guy Fawkes Guy Fawkes ( / f ɔː k s / ; 13 April 1570 – 31 January 1606), also known as Guido Fawkes while fighting for
2780-412: Is also applied to England in a more poetic capacity, though its original meaning is the island of Britain as a whole. The earliest known evidence of human presence in the area now known as England was that of Homo antecessor , dating to about 780,000 years ago. The oldest proto-human bones discovered in England date from 500,000 years ago. Modern humans are known to have inhabited the area during
2919-505: Is also known for a series of now destroyed and very detailed paintings of near contemporary events in Tudor England, whose appearances have survived in various published etchings made over the centuries when they existed. The original fortified manor house was built between 1273 and 1284 by Sir John Bohun across the river from the town of Midhurst . He named it Coudreye , the Norman word for
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#17330943358393058-485: Is damp relatively frequently and is changeable. The coldest months are January and February, the latter particularly on the English coast , while July is normally the warmest month. Months with mild to warm weather are May, June, September and October. Rainfall is spread fairly evenly throughout the year. Important influences on the climate of England are its proximity to the Atlantic Ocean , its northern latitude and
3197-622: Is governed directly by the Parliament of the United Kingdom , although other countries of the United Kingdom have devolved governments. There has been debate about how to counterbalance this in England. Originally it was planned that various regions of England would be devolved, but following the proposal's rejection by the North East in a 2004 referendum , this has not been carried out. In 2024, an England-only intergovernmental body, known as
3336-640: Is high moorland in upland areas, indented by fertile valleys of the region's rivers. They contain two national parks , the Yorkshire Dales and the Peak District . In the West Country , Dartmoor and Exmoor of the Southwest Peninsula include upland moorland supported by granite. The English Lowlands are in the central and southern regions of the country, consisting of green rolling hills, including
3475-758: Is known as the lost colony after it was found abandoned on the return of the late-arriving supply ship. With the East India Company , England also competed with the Dutch and French in the East. During the Elizabethan period, England was at war with Spain. An armada sailed from Spain in 1588 as part of a wider plan to invade England and re-establish a Catholic monarchy. The plan was thwarted by bad coordination, stormy weather and successful harrying attacks by an English fleet under Lord Howard of Effingham . This failure did not end
3614-603: Is mostly found in the north and west, including Dartmoor , the Lake District , the Pennines , and the Shropshire Hills . The country's capital is London , the metropolitan area of which has a population of 14.2 million as of 2021, representing the United Kingdom's largest metropolitan area. England's population of 56.3 million comprises 84% of the population of the United Kingdom, largely concentrated around London,
3753-454: Is part of the United Kingdom, a constitutional monarchy with a parliamentary system . There has not been a government of England since 1707, when the Acts of Union 1707 , putting into effect the terms of the Treaty of Union , joined England and Scotland to form the Kingdom of Great Britain . Before the union England was ruled by its monarch and the Parliament of England . Today England
3892-465: Is similar to that of other areas in the British Isles with a wide range of vertebrate and invertebrate life in a diverse range of habitats. National nature reserves in England are designated by Natural England as key places for wildlife and natural features in England. They were established to protect the most significant areas of habitat and of geological formations. NNRs are managed on behalf of
4031-509: The 1535–1542 acts . There were internal religious conflicts during the reigns of Henry's daughters, Mary I and Elizabeth I . The former took the country back to Catholicism while the latter broke from it again, forcefully asserting the supremacy of Anglicanism . The Elizabethan era is the epoch in the Tudor age of the reign of Queen Elizabeth I ("the Virgin Queen"). Historians often depict it as
4170-624: The Age of Discovery . Henry VIII broke from communion with the Catholic Church, over issues relating to his divorce, under the Acts of Supremacy in 1534 which proclaimed the monarch head of the Church of England . In contrast with much of European Protestantism , the roots of the split were more political than theological. He also legally incorporated his ancestral land Wales into the Kingdom of England with
4309-568: The Angeln region of what is now the German state of Schleswig-Holstein . The earliest recorded use of the term, as " Engla londe ", is in the late-ninth-century translation into Old English of Bede 's Ecclesiastical History of the English People . The term was then used to mean "the land inhabited by the English", and it included English people in what is now south-east Scotland but was then part of
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4448-574: The Battle of Trafalgar confirmed the naval supremacy Britain had established during the course of the eighteenth century. The Napoleonic Wars fostered a concept of Britishness and a united national British people , shared with the English, Scots and Welsh. London became the largest and most populous metropolitan area in the world during the Victorian era , and trade within the British Empire – as well as
4587-532: The Battle of Watling Street . The author of one study of Roman Britain suggested that from 43 AD to 84 AD, the Roman invaders killed somewhere between 100,000 and 250,000 people from a population of perhaps 2,000,000. This era saw a Greco-Roman culture prevail with the introduction of Roman law , Roman architecture , aqueducts , sewers , many agricultural items and silk. In the 3rd century, Emperor Septimius Severus died at Eboracum (now York ), where Constantine
4726-648: The British Isles , but also from the Commonwealth , particularly the Indian subcontinent . Since the 1970s there has been a large move away from manufacturing and an increasing emphasis on the service industry . As part of the United Kingdom, the area joined a common market initiative called the European Economic Community which became the European Union . Since the late 20th century the administration of
4865-596: The Cotswold Hills , Chiltern Hills , North and South Downs ; where they meet the sea they form white rock exposures such as the cliffs of Dover . This also includes relatively flat plains such as the Salisbury Plain , Somerset Levels , South Coast Plain and The Fens . England has a temperate maritime climate : it is mild with temperatures not much lower than 0 °C (32 °F) in winter and not much higher than 32 °C (90 °F) in summer. The weather
5004-712: The Court of Appeal , the High Court of Justice for civil cases, and the Crown Court for criminal cases. The Supreme Court of the United Kingdom is the highest court for criminal and civil cases in England and Wales . It was created in 2009 after constitutional changes, taking over the judicial functions of the House of Lords . A decision of the Supreme Court is binding on every other court in
5143-567: The Courts of England and Wales continued, under the Treaty of Union , as a separate legal system from the one used in Scotland . The general essence of English law is that it is made by judges sitting in courts, applying their common sense and knowledge of legal precedent – stare decisis – to the facts before them. The court system is headed by the Senior Courts of England and Wales, consisting of
5282-534: The Dissolution of the Monasteries , Sir William was given the nearby Easebourne Priory and other properties, whilst in 1538 his half-brother and heir who later inherited Cowdray, Anthony Browne , received Battle Abbey . It is rumoured that a dispossessed monk from Battle cursed the family and house by fire and water, thy line shall come to an end and it shall perish out of this land. Henry VIII made five visits to
5421-705: The French Revolution , under George III and William Pitt the Younger . The regency of George IV is noted for its elegance and achievements in the fine arts and architecture. During the Napoleonic Wars , Napoleon planned to invade from the south-east ; however, this failed to manifest and the Napoleonic forces were defeated by the British: at sea by Horatio Nelson , and on land by Arthur Wellesley . The major victory at
5560-471: The Gunpowder Plot ) and Oswald Tesimond , Edward Oldcorne and Robert Middleton, who became priests (the latter executed in 1601). After leaving school Fawkes entered the service of Anthony Browne, 1st Viscount Montagu . The Viscount took a dislike to Fawkes and after a short time dismissed him; he was subsequently employed by Anthony-Maria Browne, 2nd Viscount Montagu , who succeeded his grandfather at
5699-700: The Labour Party , 116 from the Conservative Party , 65 from the Liberal Democrats , five for Reform UK and four for the Green Party of England and Wales . The English law legal system, developed over the centuries, is the basis of common law legal systems used in most Commonwealth countries and the United States (except Louisiana ). Despite now being part of the United Kingdom, the legal system of
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5838-550: The Latin word Anglii is used. The etymology of the tribal name itself is disputed by scholars; it has been suggested that it derives from the shape of the Angeln peninsula, an angular shape. How and why a term derived from the name of this tribe, rather than others such as the Saxons , came to be used for the entire country is not known, but it seems this is related to the custom of calling
5977-462: The Low Countries . He travelled to Spain to seek support for a Catholic rebellion in England without success. He later met Thomas Wintour , with whom he returned to England. Wintour introduced him to Robert Catesby , who planned 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
6116-692: The Mayoral Council for England , was established to bring together ministers from the UK Government , the Mayor of London and the leaders of combined authorities . In the House of Commons which is the lower house of the British Parliament based at the Palace of Westminster , there are 543 members of parliament (MPs) for constituencies in England, out of the 650 total. England is represented by 347 MPs from
6255-537: The Ministry of Justice , manages most prisons, housing 81,309 prisoners in England and Wales as of September 2022 . The subdivisions of England consist of up to four levels of subnational division , controlled through a variety of types of administrative entities created for the purposes of local government . Outside the London region, England's highest tier is the 48 ceremonial counties . These are used primarily as
6394-517: The Protestant King James and replace him with his daughter, third in the line of succession, Princess Elizabeth . Fawkes was described by the Jesuit priest and former school friend Oswald Tesimond as "pleasant of approach and cheerful of manner, opposed to quarrels and strife ... loyal to his friends". Tesimond also claimed Fawkes was "a man highly skilled in matters of war", and that it
6533-672: The Severn is the longest river flowing through England. It empties into the Bristol Channel and is notable for its Severn Bore (a tidal bore ), which can reach 2 metres (6.6 ft) in height. However, the longest river entirely in England is the Thames, which is 215 miles (346 km) in length. There are many lakes in England ; the largest is Windermere , within the aptly named Lake District . Most of England's landscape consists of low hills and plains, with upland and mountainous terrain in
6672-416: The South East , and conurbations in the Midlands , the North West , the North East , and Yorkshire , which each developed as major industrial regions during the 19th century. The name "England" is derived from the Old English name Englaland , which means "land of the Angles ". The Angles were one of the Germanic tribes that settled in Great Britain during the Early Middle Ages . They came from
6811-479: The State Opening of Parliament by the British monarch when the doors of the House of Commons are slammed in the face of the monarch's messenger, symbolising the rights of Parliament and its independence from the monarch. With the founding of the Royal Society in 1660, science was greatly encouraged. In 1666 the Great Fire of London gutted the city of London, but it was rebuilt shortly afterward with many significant buildings designed by Sir Christopher Wren . By
6950-451: The Stuart dynasty England expanded in trade, finance and prosperity. The Royal Navy developed Europe's largest merchant fleet. After the parliaments of England and Scotland agreed, the two countries joined in political union , to create the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707. To accommodate the union, institutions such as the law and national churches of each remained separate. Under the newly formed Kingdom of Great Britain, output from
7089-433: The Trinovantes . The Romans invaded Britain in 43 AD during the reign of Emperor Claudius , subsequently conquering much of Britain , and the area was incorporated into the Roman Empire as Britannia province . The best-known of the native tribes who attempted to resist were the Catuvellauni led by Caratacus . Later, an uprising led by Boudica , Queen of the Iceni , ended with Boudica's suicide following her defeat at
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#17330943358397228-419: The Upper Paleolithic period, though permanent settlements were only established within the last 6,000 years. After the last ice age only large mammals such as mammoths , bison and woolly rhinoceros remained. Roughly 11,000 years ago, when the ice sheets began to recede, humans repopulated the area; genetic research suggests they came from the northern part of the Iberian Peninsula . The sea level
7367-470: The canal age in Britain . In 1825 the world's first permanent steam locomotive-hauled passenger railway – the Stockton and Darlington Railway – opened to the public. During the Industrial Revolution , many workers moved from England's countryside to new and expanding urban industrial areas to work in factories, for instance at Birmingham and Manchester , with the latter the world's first industrial city. England maintained relative stability throughout
7506-435: The decline of the Roman Empire , Britain was left exposed by the end of Roman rule in Britain and the withdrawal of Roman army units, to defend the frontiers in continental Europe and partake in civil wars. Celtic Christian monastic and missionary movements flourished. This period of Christianity was influenced by ancient Celtic culture in its sensibilities, polity, practices and theology. Local "congregations" were centred in
7645-434: The golden age in English history that represented the apogee of the English Renaissance and saw the flowering of great art, drama, poetry, music and literature. England during this period had a centralised, well-organised, and effective government. Competing with Spain , the first English colony in the Americas was founded in 1585 by explorer Walter Raleigh in Virginia and named Roanoke . The Roanoke colony failed and
7784-473: The jet engine led to wider air travel . Residential patterns were altered in England by private motoring, and by the creation of the National Health Service in 1948, providing publicly funded health care to all permanent residents free at the point of need. Combined, these prompted the reform of local government in England in the mid-20th century. Since the 20th century, there has been significant population movement to England, mostly from other parts of
7923-411: The 1650s onwards, and it became the custom after 1673 to burn an effigy (usually of the pope) when heir presumptive James, Duke of York , converted to Catholicism. Effigies of other notable figures have found their way onto the bonfires, such as Paul Kruger , Margaret Thatcher , Liz Truss , Rishi Sunak and Vladimir Putin . The "guy" is normally created by children from old clothes, newspapers, and
8062-399: The 1st Viscount Cowdray . The Viscount put a halt to the decay, arranging for the careful removal of the ivy, the restoration of any unsafe structures and a full survey of the ruins to be completed. The house remains under the ownership of Viscount Cowdray, currently Michael Pearson, 4th Viscount Cowdray , who inherited it in 1995. Following a major preservation/conservation project in 2006,
8201-426: The 32 London Boroughs and the 25 Wards of the City of London . Geographically, England includes the central and southern two-thirds of the island of Great Britain, plus such offshore islands as the Isle of Wight and the Isles of Scilly . It is bordered by two other countries of the United Kingdom: to the north by Scotland and to the west by Wales. England is closer than any other part of mainland Britain to
8340-516: The 6th century. Contemporary texts describing this period are extremely scarce, giving rise to its description as a Dark Age . Details of the Anglo-Saxon settlement of Britain are consequently subject to considerable disagreement; the emerging consensus is that it occurred on a large scale in the south and east but was less substantial to the north and west, where Celtic languages continued to be spoken even in areas under Anglo-Saxon control. Roman-dominated Christianity had, in general, been replaced in
8479-448: The English kingdom of Northumbria . The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle recorded that the Domesday Book of 1086 covered the whole of England, meaning the English kingdom, but a few years later the Chronicle stated that King Malcolm III went "out of Scotlande into Lothian in Englaland", thus using it in the more ancient sense. The earliest attested reference to the Angles occurs in the 1st-century work by Tacitus , Germania , in which
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#17330943358398618-416: The European continent. It is separated from France ( Hauts-de-France ) by a 21-mile (34 km) sea gap, though the two countries are connected by the Channel Tunnel near Folkestone . England also has shores on the Irish Sea , North Sea and Atlantic Ocean. The ports of London, Liverpool , and Newcastle lie on the tidal rivers Thames , Mersey and Tyne respectively. At 220 miles (350 km),
8757-466: The Germanic people in Britain Angli Saxones or English Saxons to distinguish them from continental Saxons (Eald-Seaxe) of Old Saxony in Germany. In Scottish Gaelic , the Saxon tribe gave their name to the word for England ( Sasunn ); similarly, the Welsh name for the English language is Saesneg . A romantic name for England is Loegria , related to the Welsh word for England, Lloegr , and made popular by its use in Arthurian legend . Albion
8896-403: The Great was left as the only surviving English kingdom, and under his successors, it steadily expanded at the expense of the kingdoms of the Danelaw . This brought about the political unification of England, first accomplished under Æthelstan in 927 and definitively established after further conflicts by Eadred in 953. A fresh wave of Scandinavian attacks from the late 10th century ended with
9035-419: The Gunpowder Plot, on 21 April he told how Fawkes was to be brought by Tesimond to England. Fawkes was a well-known Flemish mercenary, and would be introduced to "Mr Catesby" and "honourable friends of the nobility and others who would have arms and horses in readiness". Turner's report did not, however, mention Fawkes's pseudonym in England, John Johnson, and did not reach Cecil until late in November, well after
9174-446: The House of Lords, and expressed regret at his failure to do so. His steadfast manner impressed King James, who described Fawkes as possessing "a Roman resolution". James's respect did not, however, prevent him from ordering on 6 November that "John Johnson" be tortured, to reveal the names of his co-conspirators. He directed that the torture be light at first, referring to the use of manacles , but more severe if necessary, authorising
9313-426: The King and state, while keeping up his "crosses and idle ceremonies" (Catholic practices). Weakened by torture and aided by the hangman, Fawkes began to climb the ladder to the noose, but either through jumping to his death or climbing too high so the rope was incorrectly set, he managed to avoid the agony of the latter part of his execution by breaking his neck . His lifeless body was nevertheless quartered and, as
9452-430: The North Gallery to make re-decorating easier. From the collection only three paintings and a few small pieces of furniture were saved, the rest including artefacts from Battle Abbey being devoured by flames. Less than three weeks later, George Browne, 8th Viscount Montagu perished whilst trying to ride the Rhine Falls and the title passed to a descendant of the 2nd Viscount, Mark Browne who later died childless and
9591-439: The North, and the successful Norman Conquest in October 1066, accomplished by an army led by Duke William of Normandy invading at Hastings late September 1066. The Normans themselves originated from Scandinavia and had settled in Normandy in the late 9th and early 10th centuries. This conquest led to the almost total dispossession of the English elite and its replacement by a new French-speaking aristocracy, whose speech had
9730-445: The Papist sect driven out of England." He denounced Scotland, and the King's favourites among the Scottish nobles, writing "it will not be possible to reconcile these two nations, as they are, for very long". Although he was received politely, the court of Philip III was unwilling to offer him any support. In 1604 Fawkes became involved with a small group of English Catholics, led by Robert Catesby , who planned to assassinate
9869-408: The Pope. During the 14th century, the Plantagenets and the House of Valois claimed to be legitimate claimants to the House of Capet and of France; the two powers clashed in the Hundred Years' War . The Black Death epidemic hit England ; starting in 1348, it eventually killed up to half of England's inhabitants . Between 1453 and 1487, a civil war known as the War of the Roses waged between
10008-976: The Royal Society and other English initiatives combined with the Scottish Enlightenment to create innovations in science and engineering, while the enormous growth in British overseas trade protected by the Royal Navy paved the way for the establishment of the British Empire . Domestically it drove the Industrial Revolution , a period of profound change in the socioeconomic and cultural conditions of England, resulting in industrialised agriculture, manufacture, engineering and mining, as well as new and pioneering road, rail and water networks to facilitate their expansion and development. The opening of Northwest England's Bridgewater Canal in 1761 ushered in
10147-614: The Spanish in 1587 he, and most of his troops, had switched sides to serve Spain. Fawkes became an alférez or junior officer, fought well at the siege of Calais in 1596 , and by 1603 had been recommended for a captaincy . That year, he travelled to Spain to seek support for a Catholic rebellion in England. He used the occasion to adopt the Italian version of his name, Guido, and in his memorandum described James I (who became king of England that year) as "a heretic", who intended "to have all of
10286-518: The Spanish treason was read aloud, as well as confessions related specifically to the Gunpowder Plot. The last piece of evidence offered was a conversation between Fawkes and Wintour, who had been kept in adjacent cells. The two men apparently thought they had been speaking in private, but their conversation was intercepted by a government spy. When the prisoners were allowed to speak, Fawkes explained his not guilty plea as ignorance of certain aspects of
10425-524: The Spanish, was a member of a group of provincial English Catholics involved in the failed Gunpowder Plot of 1605. He was born and educated in York ; his father died when Fawkes was eight years old, after which his mother married a recusant Catholic. Fawkes converted to Catholicism and left for mainland Europe, where he fought for Catholic Spain in the Eighty Years' War against Protestant Dutch reformers in
10564-452: The Thames. Simultaneously, a revolt in the Midlands would help to ensure the capture of Princess Elizabeth. Acts of regicide were frowned upon, and Fawkes would therefore head to the continent , where he would explain to the Catholic powers his holy duty to kill the King and his retinue. A few of the conspirators were concerned about fellow Catholics who would be present at Parliament during
10703-432: The United Kingdom has moved towards devolved governance in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. England and Wales continues to exist as a jurisdiction within the United Kingdom. Devolution has stimulated a greater emphasis on a more English-specific identity and patriotism. There is no devolved English government, but an attempt to create a similar system on a sub-regional basis was rejected by referendum . England
10842-593: The United Kingdom as part of the Allies . Two decades later, in World War II , the United Kingdom was again one of the Allies . Developments in warfare technology saw many cities damaged by air-raids during the Blitz . Following the war, the British Empire experienced rapid decolonisation , and there was a speeding-up of technological innovations; automobiles became the primary means of transport and Frank Whittle 's development of
10981-584: The age of 18. At least one source claims that Fawkes married and had a son, but no known contemporary accounts confirm this. In October 1591 Fawkes sold the estate in Clifton in York that he had inherited from his father. He travelled to the continent to fight in the Eighty Years War for Catholic Spain against the new Dutch Republic and, from 1595 until the Peace of Vervins in 1598, France. Although England
11120-563: The area, the Beaker culture people made bronze , and later iron from iron ores. The development of iron smelting allowed the construction of better ploughs , advancing agriculture (for instance, with Celtic fields ), as well as the production of more effective weapons. During the Iron Age , Celtic culture , deriving from the Hallstatt and La Tène cultures , arrived from Central Europe. Brythonic
11259-678: The auspices of James VI and I the Authorised King James Version of the Holy Bible was published in 1611. It was the standard version of the Bible read by most Protestant Christians for four hundred years until modern revisions were produced in the 20th century. Based on conflicting political, religious and social positions, the English Civil War was fought between the supporters of Parliament and those of King Charles I , known colloquially as Roundheads and Cavaliers respectively. This
11398-576: The conquered territories by Anglo-Saxon paganism , but was reintroduced by missionaries from Rome led by Augustine from 597. Disputes between the Roman- and Celtic-dominated forms of Christianity ended in victory for the Roman tradition at the Council of Whitby (664), which was ostensibly about tonsures (clerical haircuts) and the date of Easter, but more significantly, about the differences in Roman and Celtic forms of authority, theology, and practice. During
11537-531: The conquest of this united kingdom by Sweyn Forkbeard in 1013 and again by his son Cnut in 1016, turning it into the centre of a short-lived North Sea Empire that also included Denmark and Norway . However, the native royal dynasty was restored with the accession of Edward the Confessor in 1042. A dispute over the succession to Edward led to an unsuccessful Norwegian Invasion in September 1066 close to York in
11676-441: The conspirators were busy tunnelling from their rented house to the House of Lords. They ceased their efforts when, during tunnelling, they heard a noise from above. Fawkes was sent out to investigate, and returned with the news that the tenant's widow was clearing out a nearby undercroft , directly beneath the House of Lords. The plotters purchased the lease to the room, which also belonged to John Whynniard. Unused and filthy, it
11815-467: The conspirators, Thomas Percy , was appointed a Gentleman Pensioner in June 1604, gaining access to a house in London that belonged to John Whynniard, Keeper of the King's Wardrobe. Fawkes was installed as a caretaker and began using the pseudonym John Johnson, servant to Percy. The contemporaneous account of the prosecution (taken from Thomas Wintour's confession) claimed that the conspirators attempted to dig
11954-449: The course of the fifth and sixth centuries, initially in the eastern part of the country. Their advance was contained for some decades after the Britons' victory at the Battle of Mount Badon , but subsequently resumed, overrunning the fertile lowlands of Britain and reducing the area under Brittonic control to a series of separate enclaves in the more rugged country to the west by the end of
12093-619: The early 2010s England was divided for a few purposes into regions; a 1998 referendum for the London Region created the London Assembly two years later. A failed 2004 North East England devolution referendum cancelled further regional assembly devolution with the regional structure outside London abolished. Ceremonially and administratively, the region is divided between the City of London and Greater London ; these are further divided into
12232-443: The gunpowder that they stockpiled there. The authorities were prompted by an anonymous letter to search Westminster Palace during the early hours of 5 November, and they found Fawkes guarding the explosives. He was questioned and tortured over the next few days and confessed to wanting to blow up the House of Lords. Fawkes was sentenced to be hanged, drawn and quartered . However, at his execution on 31 January, he died when his neck
12371-531: The hierarchy, which must follow its directions. The Secretary of State for Justice is the minister responsible to Parliament for the judiciary , the court system and prisons and probation in England. Crime increased between 1981 and 1995 but fell by 42% in the period 1995–2006. The prison population doubled over the same period, giving it one of the highest incarceration rates in Western Europe at 147 per 100,000. His Majesty's Prison Service , reporting to
12510-610: The house during his reign, in August 1538, July 1539 and August 1545. Mary of Guise , widow of James V of Scotland , stayed a night at Cowdray in October 1551. The house was also visited by Edward VI in July 1552 and by his sister Elizabeth I in August 1591. The speeches and entertainments for Elizabeth were printed later in the year. In November 1538, the last surviving member of the House of Plantagenet , Margaret Pole, 8th Countess of Salisbury ,
12649-506: The indictment. On 31 January 1606, Fawkes and three others – Thomas Wintour, Ambrose Rookwood , and Robert Keyes – were dragged from the Tower on wattled hurdles to the Old Palace Yard at Westminster, opposite the building they had attempted to destroy. His fellow plotters were then hanged and quartered. Fawkes was the last to stand on the scaffold. He asked for forgiveness of
12788-495: The lords what he was doing in possession of so much gunpowder, Fawkes answered that his intention was "to blow you Scotch beggars back to your native mountains." He identified himself as a 36-year-old Catholic from Netherdale in Yorkshire, and gave his father's name as Thomas and his mother's as Edith Jackson. Wounds on his body noted by his questioners he explained as the effects of pleurisy . Fawkes admitted his intention to blow up
12927-453: The metropolitan counties have different types of status to other ceremonial counties. The second tier is made up of combined authorities and the 27 county-tier shire counties . In 1974, all ceremonial counties were two-tier; and with the metropolitan county tier phased out, the 1996 reform separated the ceremonial county and the administrative county tier. England is also divided into local government districts. The district can align to
13066-680: The mid-to-late 17th century, two political factions had emerged – the Tories and Whigs . Though the Tories initially supported Catholic king James II , some of them, along with the Whigs, during the Revolution of 1688 invited the Dutch Prince William of Orange to defeat James and become the king. Some English people, especially in the north, were Jacobites and continued to support James and his sons. Under
13205-558: The monastic community and monastic leaders were more like chieftains, as peers, rather than in the more hierarchical system of the Roman-dominated church. Roman military withdrawals left Britain open to invasion by pagan, seafaring warriors from north-western continental Europe, chiefly the Saxons, Angles , Jutes and Frisians who had long raided the coasts of the Roman province. These groups then began to settle in increasing numbers over
13344-591: The nation, many by Natural England themselves, but also by non-governmental organisations, including the members of The Wildlife Trusts partnership, the National Trust , and the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds . There are 221 NNRs in England covering 110,000 hectares (1,100 square kilometres). Often they contain rare species or nationally important populations of plants and animals. . The Environment Agency
13483-513: The nearby hazel woods. In the 1520s, Sir David Owen, uncle to Henry VII , began construction of the current Cowdray House on the site of the former home Coudreye, which he had acquired upon the death of his wife Mary Bohun in 1496. In 1529, Sir David's son, Henry, sold the estate of Cowdray to Sir William Fitzwilliam . In 1533 Henry VIII granted a licence to Fitzwilliam's trustees to impark 600 acres (240 ha) of meadow, pasture and wood and build fortifications at "Cowdry". In 1536, following
13622-528: The night of 6 November he spoke with Waad, who reported to Salisbury "He [Johnson] told us that since he undertook this action he did every day pray to God he might perform that which might be for the advancement of the Catholic Faith and saving his own soul". According to Waad, Fawkes managed to rest through the night, despite his being warned that he would be interrogated until "I had gotton the inwards secret of his thoughts and all his complices". His composure
13761-621: The north and Wales to the west, and is otherwise surrounded by the North Sea to the east, the English Channel to the south, the Celtic Sea to the south-west, and the Irish Sea to the west. Continental Europe lies to the south-east, and Ireland to the west. At the 2021 census , the population was 56,490,048. London is both the largest city and the capital . The area now called England
13900-594: The north and west of the country. The northern uplands include the Pennines , a chain of uplands dividing east and west, the Lake District mountains in Cumbria, and the Cheviot Hills , straddling the border between England and Scotland. The highest point in England, at 978 metres (3,209 ft), is Scafell Pike in the Lake District. The Shropshire Hills are near Wales while Dartmoor and Exmoor are two upland areas in
14039-494: The opening. On the evening of 26 October, Lord Monteagle received an anonymous letter warning him to stay away, and to "retyre youre self into yowre contee whence yow maye expect the event in safti for ... they shall receyve a terrible blowe this parleament". Despite quickly becoming aware of the letter – informed by one of Monteagle's servants – the conspirators resolved to continue with their plans, as it appeared that it "was clearly thought to be
14178-483: The ownership of Anthony Browne, 7th Viscount Montagu , Capability Brown was employed to modernise the gardens. On 24 September 1793, during restoration work, a fire started in the carpenters' workshop in the North Gallery where some smouldering charcoal was allowed to fall upon the sawdust and woodshavings strewn across the floor. During the restoration work the family's furniture and treasures had also been stored in
14317-431: The peerage became extinct. These two events marked the conclusion of the supposed curse set upon the family 250 years earlier. The estate was inherited by the 8th Viscount's sister and by marriage William Stephen Poyntz . During the early 19th century, the house was left to ruin; it was quickly colonised by plants, most notably ivy, which hastened its decay. Small alterations were made to the surviving Kitchen Tower such as
14456-480: The plan, was convinced by Catesby to travel to the continent to seek help. Wintour met with the Constable of Castile, the exiled Welsh spy Hugh Owen, and Sir William Stanley, who said that Catesby would receive no support from Spain. Owen did, however, introduce Wintour to Fawkes, who had by then been away from England for many years, and thus was largely unknown in the country. Wintour and Fawkes were contemporaries; each
14595-427: The plot had been discovered. It is uncertain when Fawkes returned to England, but he was back in London by late August 1605, when he and Wintour discovered that the gunpowder stored in the undercroft had decayed. More gunpowder was brought into the room, along with firewood to conceal it. Fawkes's final role in the plot was settled during a series of meetings in October. He was to light the fuse and then escape across
14734-531: The plotters began on Monday 27 January 1606. Fawkes shared the barge from the Tower to Westminster Hall with seven of his co-conspirators. They were kept in the Star Chamber before being taken to Westminster Hall, where they were displayed on a purpose-built scaffold. The King and his close family, watching in secret, were among the spectators as the Lords Commissioners read out the list of charges. Fawkes
14873-461: The plotters' plan. At some point during this trip his name made its way into the files of Robert Cecil, 1st Earl of Salisbury , who employed a network of spies across Europe. One of these spies, Captain William Turner, may have been responsible. Although the information he provided to Salisbury usually amounted to no more than a vague pattern of invasion reports, and included nothing which regarded
15012-676: The ruins were opened to visitors on 31 March 2007. Cowdray House featured largely in Anya Seton 's 1972 historical romance Green Darkness . Citations Sources England – in Europe (green & dark grey) – in the United Kingdom (green) England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom . It is located on the island of Great Britain , of which it covers about 62%, and more than 100 smaller adjacent islands . It has land borders with Scotland to
15151-450: The settlement period the lands ruled by the incomers seem to have been fragmented into numerous tribal territories, but by the 7th century, when substantial evidence of the situation again becomes available, these had coalesced into roughly a dozen kingdoms including Northumbria , Mercia , Wessex , East Anglia , Essex , Kent and Sussex . Over the following centuries, this process of political consolidation continued. The 7th century saw
15290-472: The signing of Magna Carta , an English legal charter used to limit the sovereign's powers by law and protect the privileges of freemen. Catholic monasticism flourished, providing philosophers, and the universities of Oxford and Cambridge were founded with royal patronage. The Principality of Wales became a Plantagenet fief during the 13th century and the Lordship of Ireland was given to the English monarchy by
15429-629: The south-west of the country. The approximate dividing line between terrain types is often indicated by the Tees–Exe line . The Pennines, known as the "backbone of England", are the oldest range of mountains in the country, originating from the end of the Paleozoic Era around 300 million years ago. Their geological composition includes, among others, sandstone and limestone , and also coal. There are karst landscapes in calcite areas such as parts of Yorkshire and Derbyshire . The Pennine landscape
15568-537: The standing of the British military and navy – was prestigious. Technologically, this era saw many innovations that proved key to the United Kingdom's power and prosperity. Political agitation at home from radicals such as the Chartists and the suffragettes enabled legislative reform and universal suffrage . Power shifts in east-central Europe led to World War I; hundreds of thousands of English soldiers died fighting for
15707-521: The surprise of his enemies." The first meeting of the five central conspirators took place on Sunday 20 May 1604, at an inn called the Duck and Drake, in the fashionable Strand district of London. Catesby had already proposed at an earlier meeting with Thomas Wintour and John Wright to kill the King and his government by blowing up "the Parliament House with gunpowder". Wintour, who at first objected to
15846-487: The threat: Spain launched two further armadas, in 1596 and 1597 , but both were driven back by storms. The political structure of the island changed in 1603, when the King of Scots , James VI , a kingdom which had been a long-time rival to English interests, inherited the throne of England as James I, thereby creating a personal union . He styled himself King of Great Britain , although this had no basis in English law. Under
15985-449: The throne. His third confession, on 9 November, implicated Francis Tresham . Following the Ridolfi plot of 1571, prisoners were made to dictate their confessions, before copying and signing them, if they still could. Although it is uncertain if he was tortured on the rack, Fawkes's scrawled signature suggests the suffering he endured at the hands of his interrogators. The trial of eight of
16124-774: The two branches of the royal family, the Yorkists and Lancastrians . Eventually it led to the Yorkists losing the throne entirely to a Welsh noble family the Tudors , a branch of the Lancastrians headed by Henry Tudor who invaded with Welsh and Breton mercenaries, gaining victory at the Battle of Bosworth Field where the Yorkist king Richard III was killed. During the Tudor period , England began to develop naval skills , and exploration intensified in
16263-455: The use of the rack : "the gentler Tortures are to be first used unto him et sic per gradus ad ima tenditur [and so by degrees proceeding to the worst]". Fawkes was transferred to the Tower of London . The King composed a list of questions to be put to "Johnson", such as " as to what he is , For I can never yet hear of any man that knows him", "When and where he learned to speak French?", and "If he
16402-578: The walls of Browne's hall in Cowdray House. The original paintings were destroyed by fire in 1793 but had been copied in published etchings while they existed. In 1592, the 1st Viscount's grandson Anthony-Maria Browne inherited Cowdray. During his ownership of Cowdray, Guy Fawkes was briefly employed as a footman and the 2nd Viscount was briefly imprisoned for complicity in the Gunpowder plot after staying away from Parliament on 5 November 1605 following
16541-530: The warming of the sea by the Gulf Stream . Rainfall is higher in the west, and parts of the Lake District receive more rain than anywhere else in the country. Since weather records began, the highest temperature recorded was 40.3 °C (104.5 °F) on 19 July 2022 at Coningsby , Lincolnshire , while the lowest was −26.1 °C (−15.0 °F) on 10 January 1982 in Edgmond , Shropshire. The fauna of England
16680-536: The world's first industrialised nation. England is home to the two oldest universities in the English-speaking world: the University of Oxford , founded in 1096, and the University of Cambridge , founded in 1209. Both universities are ranked among the most prestigious in the world. England's terrain chiefly consists of low hills and plains , especially in the centre and south . Upland and mountainous terrain
16819-467: Was a Papist, who brought him up in it?" The room in which Fawkes was interrogated subsequently became known as the Guy Fawkes Room. Sir William Waad , Lieutenant of the Tower, supervised the torture and obtained Fawkes's confession. He searched his prisoner, and found a letter addressed to Guy Fawkes. To Waad's surprise, "Johnson" remained silent, revealing nothing about the plot or its authors. On
16958-563: Was an interwoven part of the wider multifaceted Wars of the Three Kingdoms , involving Scotland and Ireland . The Parliamentarians were victorious, Charles I was executed and the kingdom replaced by the Commonwealth . Leader of the Parliament forces, Oliver Cromwell declared himself Lord Protector in 1653; a period of personal rule followed. After Cromwell's death and the resignation of his son Richard as Lord Protector, Charles II
17097-488: Was born at Cowdray House on 6 October 1573. He was the third child and only surviving son of Henry Wriothesley, 2nd Earl of Southampton , and his wife, Mary Browne , daughter of the first Viscount Montagu. Wriothesley is famous as the dedicatee of Shakespeare's Venus and Adonis and The Rape of Lucrece , and the likely inspiration for the 'fair youth' of Shakespeare's Sonnets . 16th-century wall-paintings, originally commissioned by Sir Anthony Browne, were painted onto
17236-533: Was broken as he was hanged, with some sources claiming that he deliberately jumped to make this happen; he thus avoided the agony of his sentence. He became synonymous with the Gunpowder Plot , the failure of which has been commemorated in the UK as Guy Fawkes Night since 5 November 1605, when his effigy is traditionally burned on a bonfire, commonly accompanied by fireworks. Guy Fawkes was born in 1570 in Stonegate , York. He
17375-409: Was broken at some point during the following day. The observer Sir Edward Hoby remarked "Since Johnson's being in the Tower, he beginneth to speak English". Fawkes revealed his true identity on 7 November, and told his interrogators that there were five people involved in the plot to kill the King. He began to reveal their names on 8 November, and told how they intended to place Princess Elizabeth on
17514-471: Was considered an ideal hiding place for the gunpowder the plotters planned to store. According to Fawkes, 20 barrels of gunpowder were brought in at first, followed by 16 more on 20 July. On 28 July however, the ever-present threat of the plague delayed the opening of Parliament until Tuesday, 5 November. In an attempt to gain foreign support, in May 1605 Fawkes travelled overseas and informed Hugh Owen of
17653-447: Was established with the Bill of Rights in 1689. Among the statutes set down were that the law could only be made by Parliament and could not be suspended by the King, also that the King could not impose taxes or raise an army without the prior approval of Parliament. Also since that time, no British monarch has entered the House of Commons when it is sitting, which is annually commemorated at
17792-535: Was first inhabited by modern humans during the Upper Paleolithic . It takes its name from the Angles , a Germanic tribe who settled during the 5th and 6th centuries. England became a unified state in the 10th century and has had extensive cultural and legal impact on the wider world since the Age of Discovery , which began during the 15th century. The Kingdom of England , which included Wales after 1535, ceased to be
17931-500: Was identified as Guido Fawkes, "otherwise called Guido Johnson". He pleaded not guilty, despite his apparent acceptance of guilt from the moment he was captured. The jury found all the defendants guilty, and the Lord Chief Justice Sir John Popham pronounced them guilty of high treason . The Attorney General Sir Edward Coke told the court that each of the condemned would be drawn backwards to his death, by
18070-500: Was imprisoned at Cowdray until September 1539. She was the niece of Richard III , the last Plantagenet king who died at Bosworth Field in 1485. She was removed to the Tower of London , and was executed in May 1541. In 1548, Anthony Browne's son, Sir Anthony Browne inherited Cowdray; he was later ennobled as the 1st Viscount Montague upon the marriage of Queen Mary I to King Philip II of Spain . Henry Wriothesley, 3rd Earl of Southampton (1573–1624), courtier and literary patron,
18209-567: Was invited to return as monarch in 1660, in a move called the Restoration . With the reopening of theatres, fine arts, literature and performing arts flourished throughout the Restoration of the "Merry Monarch" Charles II. After the Glorious Revolution of 1688, it was constitutionally established that King and Parliament should rule together, though Parliament would have the real power. This
18348-572: Was lower than the present day and Britain was connected by land bridge to Ireland and Eurasia . As the seas rose, it was separated from Ireland 10,000 years ago and from Eurasia two millennia later. The Beaker culture arrived around 2,500 BC, introducing drinking and food vessels constructed from clay, as well as vessels used as reduction pots to smelt copper ores. It was during this time that major Neolithic monuments such as Stonehenge (phase III) and Avebury were constructed. By heating together tin and copper, which were in abundance in
18487-406: Was militant, and had first-hand experience of the unwillingness of the Spaniards to help. Wintour told Fawkes of their plan to "doe some whatt in Ingland if the pece with Spaine healped us nott", and thus in April 1604 the two men returned to England. Wintour's news did not surprise Catesby; despite positive noises from the Spanish authorities, he feared that "the deeds would nott answere". One of
18626-495: Was not by then engaged in land operations against Spain, the two countries were still at war , and the attempted invasion of England, led by the Spanish Armada in 1588, was only five years in the past. He joined Sir William Stanley , an English Catholic and veteran commander in his mid-forties who had raised an army in Ireland to fight in Leicester's expedition to the Netherlands . Stanley had been held in high regard by Elizabeth I , but following his surrender of Deventer to
18765-568: Was subsequently proclaimed emperor a century later. There is debate about when Christianity was first introduced; it was no later than the 4th century, probably much earlier. According to Bede , missionaries were sent from Rome by Eleutherius at the request of the chieftain Lucius of Britain in 180 AD, to settle differences as to Eastern and Western ceremonials, which were disturbing the church. There are traditions linked to Glastonbury claiming an introduction through Joseph of Arimathea , while others claim through Lucius of Britain. By 410, during
18904-411: Was the custom, his body parts were then distributed to "the four corners of the kingdom", to be displayed as a warning to other would-be traitors. On 5 November 1605, Londoners were encouraged to celebrate the King's escape from assassination by lighting bonfires, provided that "this testemonye of joy be carefull done without any danger or disorder". An Act of Parliament designated each 5 November as
19043-461: 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. Guy's parents were regular communicants of the Church of England , as were his paternal grandparents; his grandmother, born Ellen Harrington, was the daughter of a prominent merchant, who served as Lord Mayor of York in 1536. Guy's mother's family were recusant Catholics , and his cousin, Richard Cowling, became
19182-401: Was the spoken language during this time. Society was tribal; according to Ptolemy 's Geographia there were around 20 tribes in the area. Like other regions on the edge of the Empire, Britain had long enjoyed trading links with the Romans. Julius Caesar of the Roman Republic attempted to invade twice in 55 BC; although largely unsuccessful, he managed to set up a client king from
19321-403: Was this mixture of piety and professionalism that endeared him to his fellow conspirators. The author Antonia Fraser describes Fawkes as "a tall, powerfully built man, with thick reddish-brown hair, a flowing moustache in the tradition of the time, and a bushy reddish-brown beard", and that he was "a man of action ... capable of intelligent argument as well as physical endurance, somewhat to
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