But who was Guy Fawkes and how did he get involved in such a grotesque act of treason and murder? This walking trail will help you explore the events of the time and the city that Guy Fawkes and some of his fellow conspirators grew up in.

Guy Fawkes of York
Guido Fawkes was born a protestant in York in 1570. His father died when he was nine and his mother remarried into a family of “recusants” (catholics in secret). In 1582 Guy attended St Peter’s School along with several other Gunpowder Plotters. He inherited some land outside the city and in 1593, on his 21st birthday, he sold the land and used the money to leave home and enlist in the Spanish army, fighting for Catholics against Protestants in the religious wars raging across Europe. He became an expert in explosives and was described by his peers as brave and powerful. In 1601, in Madrid, Guy met up with Thomas Winter and his old schoolfellow from St Peters in York, Christopher Wright. Through them he was enrolled into a plot to kill the King. He was a useful expert. More importantly, he was unknown to the authorities in England.

Gunpowder, Treason and Plot
The coronation of King James I brought great hope to those who had suffered for so long under Elizabeth I. His wife was Catholic after all. When their hopes were brutally dashed, disappointment quickly turned to bitter conspiracy among some English Catholics, many from York and the surrounding area. For a year the plotters tried to tunnel under the Houses of Parliament. Eventually Thomas Percy hired the cellar in which the gunpowder barrels were hidden. It was Guy Fawkes who was to remain in the cellar and light the fuse when the time came. While Guy was tortured, his fellow conspirators were hunted down. Guy Fawkes was the last to die. Finally, he was, hung, drawn and quartered and his body parts were sent to the 4 corners of the Kingdom as a warning.