81-452: (Redirected from Treby ) George Treby may refer to: Sir George Treby (judge) (1643–1700), British judge and Member of Parliament George Treby (politician) (1684–1742), British politician and Secretary at War, eldest son of the above George Treby (younger) (c.1726–1761), MP for Plympton Erle, son of the above George Hele Treby (c.1727–1763), MP for Plympton Erle, younger brother of
162-639: A Member of Parliament for Plympton , over which pocket borough his family exerted considerable power. He was re-elected for both the February and August Parliaments of 1679, and again in 1689 and 1690. In Parliament, he focused on subjects such as the wool trade, and other topics which concerned Devon . Treby acted as chairman of the Committee of Secrecy dedicated to investigating the supposed Popish Plot revealed in November 1678 by Titus Oates . Treby's stenography
243-627: A Spanish invasion. Three popes issued bulls judging Elizabeth, giving grounds to suspect English Catholics' loyalty. Following the Babington Plot, Mary was beheaded in 1587. This – and Elizabeth's support of the Dutch Revolt in the Spanish Netherlands – triggered Philip II of Spain's attempted invasion with the Spanish Armada (1588). This reinforced English resentment of Catholics, while
324-408: A good lawyer might have turned to his client's advantage. On 30 December, the evidence against Arundell and his three fellow prisoners was ordered to be in readiness, but their public proceedings stopped. In fact, the death of William Bedloe left the prosecution in serious difficulties, since one protection for a person accused of treason, that there must be two eyewitnesses to an overt act of treason,
405-411: A hero. Of the other informers, James II was content merely to fine Miles Prance for his perjury, on the grounds that he was a Catholic and had been coerced by threats of torture into informing. Thomas Dangerfield was subjected to the same savage penalties as Oates; on returning from his first session in the pillory , Dangerfield died of an eye injury after a scuffle with the barrister Robert Francis, who
486-468: A house nearby. This caused a panic, until it was discovered that he was simply the King's firework maker. Oates became more daring and accused five Catholic lords ( William Herbert, 1st Marquess of Powis , William Howard, 1st Viscount Stafford , Henry Arundell, 3rd Baron Arundell of Wardour , William Petre, 4th Baron Petre and John Belasyse, 1st Baron Belasyse ) of involvement in the plot. The King dismissed
567-596: A mild punishment. Oates, for his part, received a state apartment in Whitehall and an annual allowance. He soon presented new allegations, claiming 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 on the Isle of Purbeck . The evidence of Oates and Bedloe
648-843: 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, and most historians regard the mystery as insoluble. Oates' associate William Bedloe denounced the silversmith Miles Prance , who in turn named three working men, Berry, Green and Hill, who were tried, convicted and executed in February 1679; but it rapidly became clear that they were completely innocent, and that Prance, who had been subjected to torture , named them simply to gain his freedom (Kenyon suggests that he may have chosen men against whom he had
729-405: A personal grudge, or he may simply have chosen them because they were the first Catholic acquaintances of his who came to mind). 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
810-594: A result of the Plympton Borough's charter having been re-drafted, which had damaged Treby's political standing. He did not serve for the rest of the reign of King James II and refused two offers for his reinstatement as Recorder of the City of London. In 1688, the Glorious Revolution overthrew King James II, and led to the crowning of King William III . He was reappointed as Recorder of London on 10 December 1688 and
891-591: Is different from Wikidata All article disambiguation pages All disambiguation pages George Treby (judge) Sir George Treby JP (1643–1700), of Plympton , Devon, and of Fleet Street in the City of London , was Lord Chief Justice of the Common Pleas and six times Member of Parliament for the Rotten Borough of Plympton Erle , Devon, largely controlled by him and his descendants until abolished by
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#1732854750030972-479: 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." Tonge was called to testify on 25 October 1678 where he gave evidence on the Great Fire and, later, rumours of another similar plot. On 1 November, both Houses ordered an investigation in which a Frenchman, Choqueux, was discovered to be storing gunpowder in
1053-463: Is thought to have published Truth Vindicated to defend himself. He was an active member of the Green Ribbon Club , and suggested that James Scott, 1st Duke of Monmouth was the rightful king. In 1681, he presented a petition from the City of London to the King requesting another Parliament. The King refused, saying the City was meddling in business that did not belong to it. In part due to
1134-514: The English Civil War (1642–1649), which led to the abolition of the monarchy and a decade of Puritan rule tolerating most forms of Protestantism, but not Catholicism. The restoration of the monarchy in 1660 under King Charles II brought a reaction against all religious dissenters outside the established Church of England. Catholics still suffered under popular hostility and legal discrimination. Anti-Catholic hysteria flared up lightly during
1215-645: The Great Reform Act of 1832. The Treby family are believed to have originated at the estate of Treby in the parish of Yealmpton in Devon, from which they took their surname. George was the eldest son of Peter Treby of Holbeton in Devon, an attorney at the Court of Common Pleas by his wife Joan Snelling, daughter of John Snelling of Chaddle Wood, Plympton (which mansion house survives today after early 1800s rebuilding), and co-heiress to her nephew, Francis Snelling. He
1296-533: The Inquisition continued, and had 300 Protestants burned at the stake, causing many Englishmen to associate Catholicism with the involvement of foreign powers and religious persecution. Mary was succeeded by her Protestant half-sister, Elizabeth I (1558–1603), who again broke away from Rome and suppressed Catholicism. Elizabeth and later Protestant monarchs caused to be hanged and mutilated hundreds of Catholic priests and laymen. This, and her dubious legitimacy – she
1377-526: The Privy Council later that month, and the Council interrogated Oates for several hours; Tonge, who was generally believed to be mad, was simply laughed at, but Oates made a much better impression on the council. On 28 September Oates made 43 allegations against various members of Catholic religious orders – including 541 Jesuits – and numerous Catholic nobles. He accused Sir George Wakeman and Edward Colman ,
1458-598: The 1670s. In December 1677 an anonymous pamphlet (possibly by Andrew Marvell ) spread alarm in London by accusing the Pope of plotting to overthrow the lawful government of England. The fictitious Popish Plot unfolded in a very peculiar fashion. Oates and Israel Tonge , a fanatically anti-Catholic clergyman (who was widely believed to be insane), had written a large manuscript that accused the Catholic Church authorities of approving
1539-509: The Armada's failure convinced many Englishmen that God was on the Protestant side. Anti-Catholic sentiment reached new heights in 1605 after the failed Gunpowder Plot . Catholic conspirators attempted to topple the Protestant reign of King James I by exploding a bomb during the King's opening of parliament. The plot was thwarted when Guy Fawkes , who was in charge of the explosives, was discovered
1620-569: The Church of England was transformed into a strictly Protestant body, with many remnants of Catholicism suppressed. Edward was succeeded by his half-sister Mary I of England (1553–1558), daughter of Henry VIII and Catherine. She was a Catholic and returned the Church in England to union with the Holy See . Mary tainted her policy with two unpopular actions: she married her cousin, King Philip II of Spain , where
1701-576: The City as a whole; it was therefore improper to attack the City for those actions. He noted that while the Quo warranto writ was brought against the City Corporation and claimed that the Corporation's illegal acts had destroyed its corporate personality , it comprised a logical contradiction, being an attack on an organisation which the writ claimed had no legal existence. The latter point was brushed aside on
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#17328547500301782-557: The City's call for a new Parliament, King Charles II and his lawyers attempted to dissolve its corporate charter by use of a writ of Quo warranto . Partly in an attempt to regain the King's favour for the City, Treby made a loyal speech when presenting the new Sheriffs of London in September 1682, but the Quo warranto action continued. Treby argued at the Court of King's Bench that any wrongs committed had been performed by individuals, not by
1863-466: The French ambassador, in which he made it clear that he did not believe that there was a word of truth in the plot, and that Oates was "a wicked man"; but that by now he had come round to the view that there must be an investigation, particularly with Parliament about to reassemble. On 6 September Oates was summoned before the magistrate Sir Edmund Berry Godfrey to swear an oath prior to his testimony before
1944-572: The House of Commons and Treby won the second vote two weeks later. In 1692, he was appointed Chief Justice of the Common Pleas and resigned his seat in the Commons and his Recordership. In 1693, he presided at the trial of William Anderton for libel and in 1695 and 1696 he was among the judges who tried the Association plotters. In 1700, after suffering illness, he moved to Kensington near London, with his wife and died there on 13 December. He started
2025-522: The King for the first time "began to think that there might be somewhat in the Plot". However, public opinion began to turn against Oates. As Kenyon points out, the steady protestations of innocence by all of those who were executed eventually took hold in the public mind. Outside London, the priests who died were almost all venerable and popular members of the community, and there was widespread public horror at their executions. Even Lord Shaftesbury came to regret
2106-511: The King made it clear that he approved of Scroggs' conduct. 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 , sentenced to a fine of £100,000 and thrown into prison. When James II acceded to the throne in 1685 he had Oates tried on two charges of perjury. The Bench which tried him
2187-627: 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 instead of those of Guy Fawkes . At the end of the year, the parliament passed a bill, a second Test Act , excluding Catholics from membership of both Houses (a law not repealed until 1829). On 1 November 1678, 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
2268-608: The King. Oates claimed he had been at a Jesuit meeting held at the White Horse Tavern in the Strand, London , on April 24, 1678. According to Oates, the purpose of that meeting was to discuss the assassination of Charles II . 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
2349-607: The London underworld. 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: Roger North wrote that it was as though "the very Cabinet of Hell has been opened". 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
2430-464: The Lords' committee; on 3 December the five peers were arraigned for 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
2511-464: The Plot, 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 into people's minds. However, word of the manuscript spread to the Duke of York, who publicly called for an investigation into the matter. Even Charles admitted that given the sheer number of allegations, he could not say positively that none of them
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2592-767: The Popish Plot. At about the same time he was appointed Recorder of London and was knighted on 22 January 1681. In February 1681, he was appointed a Justice of the Peace for London and Devon. He was again elected MP for Plympton in April 1681 for the Third Exclusion Parliament, and helped to introduce the Third Exclusion Bill. He disclosed information gained about the Popish Plot from Edward Fitzharris , intending to impeach him and thereby to gain more information about
2673-584: The Protestant Netherlands. Furthermore, Charles' brother and heir presumptive, James, Duke of York , had embraced Catholicism, although his brother forbade him to make any public avowal. In 1672, Charles issued the Royal Declaration of Indulgence , in which he suspended all penal laws against Catholics and other religious dissenters. This fueled Protestant fears of increasing Catholic influence in England, and led to conflict with parliament during
2754-545: The above George Treby (British Army officer) (168c. 5–?), British Army officer and politician [REDACTED] Topics referred to by the same term This disambiguation page lists articles about people with the same name. If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article. Retrieved from " https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=George_Treby&oldid=879063891 " Category : Human name disambiguation pages Hidden categories: Short description
2835-473: The accusations as absurd, pointing out that Belasyse was so afflicted with gout that he could hardly stand, while Arundell and Stafford, who had not been on speaking terms for 25 years, were most unlikely to be intriguing together; but Anthony Ashley Cooper, 1st Earl of Shaftesbury had the lords arrested and sent to the Tower on 25 October 1678. Seizing upon the anti-Catholic tide, Shaftesbury publicly demanded that
2916-402: The assassination of Charles II. The Jesuits in England were to carry out the task. The manuscript also named nearly 100 Jesuits and their supporters who were 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 of a gallery in the house of the physician Sir Richard Barker, with whom Tonge
2997-517: The building of Plympton House , a grand country house, in the William-and Mary tradition, near St Maurice's Church in Plympton, but did not live to see its completion, which was performed circa 1715–20 by his son George Treby. The arms of Treby are sculpted on a large escutcheon in the centre of the pediment of the south front. Treby married four times: Popish Plot The Popish Plot
3078-480: The committee investigating people who had promoted the 'abhorrences' of petitions to King Charles II for summoning parliament. He became Chairman of the Elections Committee and continued to investigate the Popish Plot, helping introduce the second Exclusion Bill to Parliament. In December 1680, he was one of the lawyers trying William Howard, 1st Viscount Stafford , the first peer to be arrested as part of
3159-526: The corporation ceased its legal existence. Treby lost his Recordership and his position as JP in various counties. In 1684, the Borough of Plympton had a similar case brought against it and informed by the example of the City of London, it surrendered, Treby losing his Recordership there as well. In the elections to the 1685 Parliament Treby stood unsuccessfully against Richard Strode, a member of an old Devon gentry family of Newnham, Plympton St Mary , partially as
3240-455: The countryside, they took with them stories of a kind which were to be familiar enough in 1678 and 1679." Anti-Catholicism was fueled by doubts about the religious allegiance of the King, who had been supported by the Catholic powers during his exile, and had married a Portuguese Catholic princess, Catherine of Braganza . Charles formed an alliance with the leading Catholic power France against
3321-545: The executions and is said to have quietly ordered the release of particular priests, whose families he knew. Accusations of plotting in Yorkshire (the "Barnbow Plot"), where prominent local Catholics like Sir Thomas Gascoigne, 2nd Baronet were accused of signing "the Bloody Oath of Secrecy", were unsuccessful because their Protestant neighbours (who sat on the juries) refused to convict them. A grand jury at Westminster rejected
George Treby - Misplaced Pages Continue
3402-410: 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 against Stafford was reversed. On 24 November 1678, Oates claimed the Queen was working with the King's physician to poison him and enlisted the aid of "Captain" William Bedloe , a notorious member of
3483-472: The grounds that the corporation would only be destroyed if judgement was brought against it, which the court duly did. Judgement was deferred in the hopes the City might surrender its charter to the King, but Treby convinced the City leaders to continue fighting, saying that to surrender would violate their oaths to uphold the rights of the City and its citizens. Despite this, judgement was entered in October 1683 and
3564-626: The hysteria. 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 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
3645-516: The lack of substantial evidence and inconsistencies in Oates's testimony began to unravel the plot. Eventually, Oates himself was arrested and convicted for perjury , exposing the fabricated nature of the conspiracy. The fictitious Popish Plot must be understood against the background of the English Reformation and the subsequent development of a strong anti-Catholic nationalist sentiment among
3726-467: The manuscript but did not know the author. As Kenyon points out, the government took seriously even the remotest hint of a threat to the King's life or well-being – in the previous spring a Newcastle housewife had been investigated by the Secretary of State simply for saying that "the King gets the curse of many good and faithful wives such as myself for his bad example". Danby, who seems to have believed in
3807-508: The mostly Protestant population of England. The English Reformation began in 1533, when King Henry VIII (1509–1547) sought an annulment of his marriage to Catherine of Aragon to marry Anne Boleyn . As the Pope would not grant this, Henry broke away from Rome and took control of the Church in England . Later, he had the monasteries dissolved, causing opposition in the still largely Catholic nation. Under Henry's son Edward VI (1547–1553),
3888-408: The murder of Sir Edmund Berry Godfrey , a magistrate and strong supporter of Protestantism, to whom Oates had made his first depositions. His disappearance on 12 October 1678, the finding of his mutilated 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
3969-567: 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 (32 km) around London, which Charles granted on 30 October 1678, but it
4050-467: The night before. The magnitude of the plot, meant to kill the leading government figures in one stroke, convinced many Englishmen that Catholics were murderous conspirators who would stop at nothing to have their way, laying the groundwork for future allegations. Anti-Catholic sentiment was a constant factor in how England perceived the events of the following decades: the Thirty Years War (1618–1648)
4131-477: The number of innocent men he had been forced to condemn; possibly thinking of the Act of Indemnity and Oblivion , under which he had pardoned many of his former opponents in 1660, he remarked that his people had never previously had cause to complain of his mercy. At the trial of Sir George Wakeman, and several priests who were tried with him, Scroggs virtually ordered the jury to acquit all of them, and despite public uproar,
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#17328547500304212-434: The other conspirators. Following the dissolution of the Third Exclusion Parliament and after any information revealed was no longer a threat to the King, Fitzharris was charged with treason. Along with Sir Henry Pollexfen and Sir Francis Winnington , Treby went to court to try to prevent the execution of Fitzharris, his most important witness. The argument was that the Court of King's Bench could not try Fitzharris as he
4293-593: 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 , Franciscans , and the Benedictines were also affected by
4374-420: 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. The King did agree to see both Kirkby and Tonge that evening, when he gave them a short audience. At this stage, he
4455-455: The plot; apparently it did not occur to them that Oates' ability to recognise the letters made it more likely, rather than less, that he had forged them. Others Oates accused included Dr. William Fogarty, Archbishop Peter Talbot of Dublin , Samuel Pepys and John Belasyse, 1st Baron Belasyse . The list grew to 81 accusations. Oates was given a squad of soldiers and he began to round up Jesuits. The allegations gained little credence until
4536-503: The plotting charge against Sir John Fitzgerald, 2nd Baronet in 1681. Judges gradually began to take a more impartial line, ruling that it was not treason for a Catholic to advocate the conversion of England to the old faith, nor to give financial support to religious houses (the latter was a criminal offence, just not treason). The supposed plot gained some credence in Ireland , where the two Catholic Archbishops, Plunkett and Talbot , were
4617-527: The principal victims, but not in Scotland . Having had at least twenty-two innocent men executed (the last being Oliver Plunkett , the Catholic Archbishop of Armagh on 1 July 1681), Chief Justice William Scroggs began to declare people innocent and the King began to devise countermeasures. The King, who was notably tolerant of religious differences and generally inclined to clemency, was embittered at
4698-535: The reign of Charles II, which saw disasters such as the Great Plague of London (1665) and the Great Fire of London (1666). Vague rumours blamed the fire on arson by Catholics and especially Jesuits . Kenyon remarks, "At Coventry , the townspeople were possessed by the idea that the papists were about to rise and cut their throats ... A nationwide panic seemed likely, and as homeless refugees poured out from London into
4779-485: The secretary to Mary of Modena Duchess of York , of planning the assassination. Colman was found to have corresponded with the French Jesuit Fr Ferrier, confessor to Louis XIV , outlining his grandiose schemes for obtaining a dissolution of the present Parliament, in the hope of its replacement by a new and pro-French Parliament; in the wake of this revelation he was condemned to death for treason . Wakeman
4860-445: The supposed plot. The hysteria had serious consequences for ordinary British Catholics as well as priests. On 30 October 1678, 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 (c.19 km) radius of the city without special permission. Throughout this period Catholics were subject to fines, harassment and imprisonment. It
4941-578: Was a fictitious conspiracy invented by Titus Oates that between 1678 and 1681 gripped the kingdoms of England and Scotland in anti-Catholic hysteria. Oates alleged that there was an extensive Catholic conspiracy to assassinate Charles II , accusations that led to the show trials and executions of at least 22 men and precipitated the Exclusion Bill Crisis . During this tumultuous period, Oates weaved an intricate web of accusations, fueling public fears and paranoia. However, as time went on,
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#17328547500305022-546: Was again returned to Parliament for Plympton in 1689. He was named Solicitor General for England and Wales in March and Attorney General on 6 May 1689. While in Parliament he helped to draft the Bill of Rights (1689) , a landmark document in British law. He was seemingly defeated in the March 1690 election, again by his near neighbour Richard Strode, but the result was overturned and voided by
5103-417: Was already sceptical, but he was apparently not ready to rule out the possibility that there might be a plot of some sort (otherwise, Kenyon argues, he would not have given these two very obscure men a private audience). Charles told Kirkby to present Tonge to Thomas Osborne, Lord Danby , Lord High Treasurer , then the most influential of the King's ministers. Tonge then lied to Danby, saying that he had found
5184-469: Was currently being prosecuted by Parliament; to do so would be to move the case from a higher court to a lower one. The argument was thrown out as the dissolution of Parliament meant that the impeachment case had effectively ceased, and Fitzharris was executed shortly after. After his execution, Fitzharris's alleged confession was published by Francis Hawkins, in which it was claimed Treby and others had attempted to pressure him into giving false testimony. Treby
5265-404: Was deciphered by Andrea McKenzie and viewed as "as a kind of casuistry." In June 1679, proposals were discussed for Treby to be elected Speaker of the House of Commons , but were not acted upon as he suffered from extreme myopia and was unable to distinguish between different MPs. He failed to be elected Chairman of the Committee of Elections and Privileges in 1679, but, in 1680, was named to
5346-551: Was educated at Plympton Grammar School , and was accepted into Exeter College, Oxford in June 1660. He left without completing a degree. He entered the Middle Temple for his legal training on 24 October 1663 and was called to the Bar on 2 June 1671. He became a bencher of Middle Temple on 28 January 1681, served as a reader in 1686 and was treasurer in 1689. In March 1677 he was elected
5427-417: Was fixed for 13 May, but a quarrel between the two houses as to points of procedure, and the legality of admitting the bishops as judges in a capital trial, followed by a dissolution, delayed its commencement until 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. His trial, compared to the other Plot trials,
5508-552: Was hanged for his murder. Bedloe, Turbervile and Dugdale had all died of natural causes while the Plot was still officially regarded as true. The Society of Jesus suffered the most between 1678 and 1681. During this period, nine Jesuits were executed and twelve died in prison. Three other deaths were attributable to the hysteria. They also lost Combe in Herefordshire , which was the Jesuit headquarters for south Wales. A quote from French Jesuit Claude de la Colombière highlights
5589-454: Was later acquitted. Despite Oates' unsavoury reputation, the councillors were impressed by his confidence, his grasp of detail and his remarkable memory. A turning point came when he was shown five letters, supposedly written by well-known priests and giving details of the plot, which he was suspected of forging: Oates "at a single glance" named each of the alleged authors. At this the council were "amazed" and began to give much greater credence to
5670-519: Was living. 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' scientific experiments, and Charles prided himself on being approachable to the general public. On 13 August 1678, whilst Charles was out walking in St. James's Park , the chemist informed him of
5751-462: Was observed scrupulously, and only Oates claimed to have any hard evidence against the remaining Lords. Lord Petre died in the Tower in 1683. His companions remained there until 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
5832-458: Was presided over by the formidable George Jeffreys, 1st Baron Jeffreys , who conducted the trial in such a manner that Oates had no hope of acquittal, and the jury brought in the expected guilty verdict. The death penalty was not available for perjury and Oates was sentenced to be stripped of clerical dress, whipped through London twice, and imprisoned for life and pilloried every year (the penalties were so severe that it has been argued that Jeffreys
5913-540: Was reasonably fair, but as in all cases of alleged treason at that date the absence of defence counsel was a fatal handicap (this was finally remedied in 1695), and while Oates' credit had been seriously damaged, the evidence of the principal prosecution witnesses, Turberville and Dugdale, struck even fair-minded observers like John Evelyn as being credible enough. Stafford, denied the services of counsel, failed to exploit several inconsistencies in Tuberville's testimony, which
5994-456: Was searched – without result – in the expectation of a second Gunpowder Plot . Anyone even suspected of being Catholic was driven out of London and forbidden to be within ten miles (16 km) of the city. William Staley , a young Catholic banker, made a drunken threat against the King; within 10 days he was tried, convicted of plotting treason and executed. In calmer times, Staley's offence would probably have resulted in him being bound over ,
6075-600: Was seen as an attempt by the Catholic Habsburgs to exterminate German Protestantism. Under the early Stuart Kings, fears of Catholic conspiracies were rampant and the policies of Charles I – especially his church policies, which had a decidedly high church bent – were seen as pro-Catholic and likely induced by a Catholic conspiracy headed by Charles' Catholic queen, Henrietta Maria of France . This, together with accounts of Catholic atrocities in Ireland in 1641, helped trigger
6156-412: Was supplemented by other informers; some like Thomas Dangerfield , were notorious criminals, but others like Stephen Dugdale , Robert Jenison and Edward Turberville were men of good social standing who from motives of greed or revenge denounced innocent victims, and by their apparently plausible evidence made the Plot seem more credible. Dugdale in particular made such a good initial impression that even
6237-662: Was the daughter of Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn – led to Catholic powers not recognising her as queen and favouring her next relative, the Catholic Mary, Queen of Scots . Elizabeth's reign saw Catholic rebellions like the Rising of the North (1569) as well as intrigues like the Ridolfi Plot (1571) and the Babington Plot (1586), both intending to kill Elizabeth and replace her with Mary under
6318-469: 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 on 24 April this plea was 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 impeachment trial
6399-511: Was too late because London was already in a panic, which was long remembered as "Godfrey's autumn". Oates seized on Godfrey's 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 on 23 October 1678. He testified that he had seen
6480-480: Was true, and reluctantly agreed. During the investigation, Oates' name arose. From the first, the King was convinced that Oates was a liar, and Oates did not help his case by claiming to have met the regent of Spain , Don John of Austria . Questioned by the King, who had met Don John in Brussels in 1656, it became obvious that Oates had no idea what he looked like. The King had a long and frank talk with Paul Barillon ,
6561-409: Was trying to kill Oates by ill-treatment). Oates spent the next three years in prison. At the accession of William of Orange and Mary 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, quite forgotten by the public which had once called him
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