5 Things You Probably Didn't Know About The Gunpowder Plot
3. It Wasn't Robert Catesby's First Anti-Crown Plot
Catesby is the mostly forgotten leader of the Gunpowder Plot, but this was not his first attempt or involvement at dislodging a monarch. Catesby was one of the lead figures of the Essex Rebellion which took place in 1601, led by Robert Devereux, 2nd Earl of Essex.
Devereux was a shamed former army captain who founded the revolt against Queen Elizabeth I, after she personally relieved him of his military duties. This came about following Devereux's botched military operation in Ireland shortly before, where he was meant to squash a rebellion but instead signed a peace treaty with them.
The Essex Rebellion was unsuccessful and was thwarted by the crown in a matter of weeks. On 25 February 1601, Robert Devereux was executed in the Tower of London, and a month later five of his chief advisers were all tried and found guilty of high treason. Catesby however, a sympathiser with the rebellion, managed to evade persecution and had another go at taking on the crown four years later.