Thomas Percy (Gunpowder Plot) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Thomas Percy
|
|
|---|---|
Engraving of Percy
|
|
| Born | c. 1560 |
| Died | 8 November 1605 (aged 44–45) |
| Cause of death | Gunshot wound |
| Occupation | Constable of Alnwick Castle |
| Spouse(s) | Martha Wright |
| Parent(s) |
|
| Motive | Conspiracy to assassinate King James VI & I and members of the Houses of Parliament |
| Criminal penalty | Decapitation |
| Role | Logistics |
| Enlisted | 20 May 1604 |
Thomas Percy (born around 1560 – died 8 November 1605) was part of a group of English Catholics. They planned the Gunpowder Plot in 1605, which did not succeed. Thomas Percy was a tall and strong man. We don't know much about his early life, except that he started studying at the University of Cambridge in 1579. He married Martha Wright in 1591.
In 1596, his relative, Henry Percy, 9th Earl of Northumberland, made him the constable of Alnwick Castle. This meant Thomas was in charge of the Percy family's lands in the north. He also worked for the Earl in the Low Countries (modern-day Netherlands and Belgium) around 1600–1601. Before 1603, he secretly carried messages between the Earl and King James VI of Scotland.
After James became King of England in 1603, Thomas Percy was disappointed. He felt the new king had broken his promises to be fair to English Catholics. In June 1603, he met Robert Catesby, who also disliked the new king. The next year, Percy joined Catesby's plan to kill the king and his government. They wanted to blow up the House of Lords using gunpowder. Percy helped pay for the plan and rented buildings in London. One of these was a room right under the House of Lords, where the gunpowder was eventually placed. The plotters also planned to start a rebellion in the Midlands. They wanted to kidnap King James's daughter, Princess Elizabeth. Percy was supposed to stay in London and capture her brother, Prince Henry.
The plot was discovered early on November 5, 1605. Thomas Percy quickly ran away to the Midlands. He met up with other plotters on their way to Dunchurch in Warwickshire. Their escape ended at Holbeche House in Staffordshire. On November 8, the Sheriff of Worcester and his men surrounded the house. Thomas Percy was reportedly killed by the same gunshot that killed Catesby. He was buried nearby. Later, his body was dug up, and his head was put on display outside Parliament. Because Percy was involved in the plot, his boss, the Earl of Northumberland, was also in trouble. Even though the Earl wasn't involved, he was put in the Tower of London until 1621.
Early Life and Connections
Thomas Percy was the younger son of Edward Percy and Elizabeth Waterton. His family was related to the powerful Percy family. He was the great-grandson of Henry Percy, 4th Earl of Northumberland. This made him a distant cousin of Henry Percy, 9th Earl of Northumberland.
He was born around 1560 and started at University of Cambridge in 1579. We don't know much about his early years. He may have become a Catholic at some point. In 1591, he married Martha Wright. Her mother was a Catholic who had been punished for her beliefs. Martha's brothers, Christopher and John Wright, later joined the Gunpowder Plot. Some people say Percy left Martha for another woman, but this is not certain. Martha and her daughter lived on money given to them by a Catholic lord, William Parker, 4th Baron Monteagle. Thomas and Martha's son, Robert, got married in 1615.
Even though they were not close relatives, the 9th Earl of Northumberland gave Thomas important jobs. In 1595, Thomas collected rents from the Earl's northern lands. The next year, he became the constable of Alnwick Castle. Some people complained about how Thomas used his power. He was accused of not managing things well and taking bribes. He was once put in jail in London for killing a Scot during a border fight. But Robert Devereux, 2nd Earl of Essex helped him get out. Thomas later helped Essex in a plan against a Scottish leader. However, unlike some others in the Gunpowder Plot, Thomas did not join Essex's failed rebellion in 1601.
Thomas Percy was a tall and strong man. People described him as serious but charming. He was also said to be a bit wild and energetic. A Jesuit priest named Father John Gerard said that Percy was "very wild" and "much given to fighting" when he was young. Another Jesuit, Oswald Tesimond, thought he was "rather wild and given to the gay life." Both priests said that becoming a Catholic made Percy calmer. But historian Mark Nicholls says this was only partly true, calling Percy a "pugnacious character."
His wild side didn't stop him from working for Northumberland in the Low Countries from 1600 to 1601. He was paid well for this. In 1603, the Earl also made Percy responsible for collecting rents in Cumberland and Northumberland. Henry Percy, the Earl, was seen as a supporter of Catholics. Before 1603, he often sent Thomas to deliver secret letters to King James VI of Scotland. This was because Queen Elizabeth I was old, and James was likely to be the next king. The Earl wanted to build a good relationship with James.
We don't know exactly what promises James made to Percy. Tesimond wrote that James made "very generous promises to favour Catholics." He said James would give them "every kind of honour and office." But most historians believe James's promises were spoken, not written. Some think James only meant to let Catholics worship privately. This was very different from what Percy told other Catholics. Percy told them the king had promised to protect their religion. There might have been a misunderstanding because of James's way of speaking English. In his letters to Northumberland, James only said that peaceful Catholics would not be bothered. He also said that those who served him well would be recognized. This mix-up of messages had big consequences later on.
Joining the Plot
Thomas Percy became the fifth member of the Gunpowder Plot on Sunday, May 20, 1604. Almost a year earlier, he had visited Robert Catesby's home. Percy complained bitterly about King James, who had not met his expectations for Catholics. Percy even threatened to kill the new king himself. But Catesby told him to calm down. Catesby said, "I am thinking of a most sure way and I will soon let thee know what it is."
So, Percy found himself at the Duck and Drake inn in London. Catesby, his cousin Thomas Wintour, John Wright, and Guy Fawkes were also there. Percy's first words at the meeting were, "Shall we always, gentlemen, talk and never do anything?" After their discussion, all five men swore an oath of secrecy on a prayer book. Then, they attended Mass in another room with Father Gerard, who did not know about their secret plan.
At that time, the plotters didn't have a detailed plan. But on June 9, Percy was given a job as a Gentleman Pensioner (a royal bodyguard). This gave him a reason to have a place to stay in London. Through the Earl of Northumberland's agents, Percy rented a house in Westminster. He put Fawkes there as his servant, calling him "John Johnson." On March 25, 1605, Percy also rented the room directly under the House of Lords. This was the room where the plotters moved 36 barrels of gunpowder. The gunpowder came from Catesby's lodgings across the River Thames.
The plan was to blow up the House of Lords during the State Opening of Parliament. The king and his government leaders would all be there. King James's daughter, Princess Elizabeth, would be captured during a rebellion in the Midlands. She would then be made queen.
That autumn, Percy collected rents for Northumberland. Meanwhile, Catesby continued to get more people to join the plot. By October 1605, there were 12 Catholic men involved. They were working on the final details. Some of the plotters worried about other Catholics who might be hurt in the explosion. Percy was concerned about his boss, Northumberland. It seemed Northumberland might have become a powerful leader if the plot had worked. Lord Monteagle's name was also mentioned by a worried Francis Tresham. The fate of Elizabeth's brother, Prince Henry, was unclear. The plotters thought he would die with his father. But if he didn't attend Parliament, Percy was supposed to kidnap him.
The Monteagle Letter
On Saturday, October 26, Lord Monteagle received a secret letter at his house. The letter warned him to stay away from Parliament. He wasn't sure what it meant, so he gave it to Robert Cecil, 1st Earl of Salisbury. Cecil already knew something was going on, but he didn't know the exact plan or who was involved. Instead of telling the king right away, he decided to wait and watch.
Catesby reacted differently when he heard about the letter. He and Wintour suspected Francis Tresham wrote it. They went to confront him. Tresham managed to convince them he was innocent. All the while, he urged them to stop the plot. Percy reacted to the news by saying he was ready to face "the uttermost trial." He may have visited the young Prince Charles on November 1. This might mean they were thinking about changing the plan. A servant later said that Percy visited the prince's rooms and asked "many enquiries as to the way into his chamber." However, this statement came too late for Percy to respond to it.
Percy visited Northumberland at Syon House, west of London, on November 4. Some historians think he was trying to find out what Northumberland knew about the letter. This visit later caused big problems for the Earl. Northumberland said their conversation was not about treason. He claimed Percy only asked if he needed any service before leaving. Percy then went to another of Northumberland's properties, Essex House, and spoke with his nephew. Later that evening, he met with Wintour, John Wright, and Robert Keyes. He assured them that everything was fine. Then he went to his own rooms and told his servants to get his horses ready for an early departure the next morning.
Plot Fails and Death
By then, the king knew about the letter. King James felt it hinted at "some strategem of fire and powder." He thought it might be an explosion even bigger than the one that killed his father, Lord Darnley, in 1567. The next day, the Privy Council (the king's advisors) decided to search Parliament, "both above and below." The first search, led by Thomas Howard, 1st Earl of Suffolk, happened on November 4. The owner of the house, John Whynniard, told the search party that Percy rented it. Monteagle, who was there, immediately told Suffolk that he suspected Percy wrote the letter.
The king ordered a second, more thorough search. Around midnight, Guy Fawkes was found guarding the gunpowder and was arrested right away. Fawkes said his name was John Johnson, a servant to Thomas Percy. So, Percy's name was on the government's first arrest warrant. The warrant described him as a "tall, florid man, with a broad beard—'the head more white then the beard'—and stooping shoulders, being also 'long footed, small legged'." A famous astrologer, Simon Forman, was asked to find out where Percy was. A rider was sent to look for him in northern England, and Essex House was searched.
But all these efforts were useless. Percy had been warned that Fawkes was captured. He had already run away to the Midlands with Christopher Wright. As he left, he told a servant, "I am undone." The two men met Catesby and the others, who had already left for the Midlands rebellion. They continued on to Dunchurch, even throwing off their cloaks to go faster.
Percy and some of his fellow plotters ended their escape around 10:00 pm on November 7. They were at Holbeche House near the Staffordshire county line. Percy was not hurt by a gunpowder accident that injured Catesby and some others. But those who remained decided to wait for the government forces, who were only hours behind them. So, at 11:00 am the next morning, the house was surrounded by the Sheriff of Worcester, Richard Walsh, and his 200 men.
In the fight that followed, Thomas Percy and Catesby were reportedly killed by the same musket ball, fired by a man named John Streete. News of the battle quickly reached London. The government had offered a big reward for Percy's capture, but now it was not needed. The plotters who survived were arrested. The dead were buried near Holbeche. But by order of the Earl of Northampton, the bodies of Percy and Catesby were dug up. Their heads were put on spikes outside Parliament.
With Thomas dead, there was no one who could prove or disprove Henry Percy's involvement in the plot. The fact that he didn't make Thomas take an oath of loyalty to the king when he became a Gentleman Pensioner, and their meeting on November 4, looked very bad for the Earl. The Privy Council also thought that if the plot had succeeded, he might have protected Princess Elizabeth. There wasn't enough proof to convict him of treason. So, he was charged with disrespecting the court, fined £30,000, and lost all his public jobs. He stayed in the Tower until 1621.
|
