In November of 1906, the infamous Gunpowder Plot took place. Guy Fawkes plotted to blow up James I, the first of the Stuart Kings of England.
After Queen Elizabeth I died in 1603, English Catholics who had been mistreated under her rule had hoped that her inheritor, James I, would be more accepting of their religion as he had a Catholic mother. Unfortunately, James didn’t turn out to be more tolerant than Elizabeth and a number of young men, 13 to be exact, decided that the only way to make things right was to use violence. They formed a plan to assassinate James and his daughter Elizabeth. This not only led to them wanting them to kill James and his daughter, but everyone in the Houses of Parliament with James when he opened Parliament on November 5th, 1605. To carry out their plan they got a hold of thirty six barrels of gunpowder and stored them in a cellar under the House of Lords. The King found out about these events which were going to occur so his forces made plans to stop the schemers. Fawkes, who was in the cellar with the barrels, was caught when authorities captured him during the early hours of the morning and was tortured and executed. This event in history is relevant to Macbeth’s plan to murder King Duncan as it shows how someone is so angry (or hungry for power) that they would go to the extent of plotting a murder to achieve what the desire. In the end, it doesn't work out and the punishment means death, things have turned out worse than if they stayed in their place. In conclusion doing a wrong will always end up in a bad punishment. |