The final episode begins with the larding in of 600 pounds of gunpowder beneath the House of Lords. The program does not make it clear that if the Gunpowder Plot went according to plan, the House of Lords, Westminster Abbey, Whitehall Palace would have been destroyed with untold casualties. In its age, this was a potentially greater act of terror than the tragic events of September 11, 2001.
The amateurish nature of the plot included a grandiose invasion plan in which William Stanley would bring an army from Flanders, landing at Dover and taking over the nation of England in the name of the Catholics. While the program was sympathetic towards the Catholic recusants at the start, by the final episode, the empathy has eroded for the conspirators led by the fanatic Robert "Robin" Catesby.
As portrayed in this episode, the Gunpowder conspiracy imploded because of two snitches. The first is Father Gerard, who, after surviving torture on the strappado withholding information about plot to Wade, instantly blabs to a Spanish envoy who asks him for details about the plot. The second snitch will forever remain anonymous, as the revelation came in the form of an unsigned letter sent to William Parker, Lord Monteagle. Monteagle was a Catholic, but he turned over the letter to the court.
The wily Robert Cecil allowed King James to decipher the letter and lay claim to the credit for uncovering the plot. Guy Fawkes, whose job it was to ignite the fuse under Parliament, is apprehended early in the final episode, and the remainder of the program is given over the conspirators, who try hard to turn themselves into martyrs.
The genuine martyr is Father Garnet, who is played with great dignity by Peter Mullan. Liv Tyler is also excellent in the role of Anne Vaux, who manages to evade the authorities. Meanwhile, at Pepper Hill, Robin and his cohorts decide that they will not try to make a break for it and fight to the bitter end. They hole up in Holbeach House, where a standoff occurs that reaches the epic portions of the Alamo.
In the history textbooks, the Gunpowder Plot is typically made synonymous with Guy Fawkes. The series was successful in dramatizing the greater extent of the plot and developing the major players beyond Fawkes. It was also successful in conveying the chilling story of Christians killing Christians at the start of the seventeenth century, which would prove to be one of the most horrific in devastating and senseless wars of religion in Western Europe.
The amateurish nature of the plot included a grandiose invasion plan in which William Stanley would bring an army from Flanders, landing at Dover and taking over the nation of England in the name of the Catholics. While the program was sympathetic towards the Catholic recusants at the start, by the final episode, the empathy has eroded for the conspirators led by the fanatic Robert "Robin" Catesby.
As portrayed in this episode, the Gunpowder conspiracy imploded because of two snitches. The first is Father Gerard, who, after surviving torture on the strappado withholding information about plot to Wade, instantly blabs to a Spanish envoy who asks him for details about the plot. The second snitch will forever remain anonymous, as the revelation came in the form of an unsigned letter sent to William Parker, Lord Monteagle. Monteagle was a Catholic, but he turned over the letter to the court.
The wily Robert Cecil allowed King James to decipher the letter and lay claim to the credit for uncovering the plot. Guy Fawkes, whose job it was to ignite the fuse under Parliament, is apprehended early in the final episode, and the remainder of the program is given over the conspirators, who try hard to turn themselves into martyrs.
The genuine martyr is Father Garnet, who is played with great dignity by Peter Mullan. Liv Tyler is also excellent in the role of Anne Vaux, who manages to evade the authorities. Meanwhile, at Pepper Hill, Robin and his cohorts decide that they will not try to make a break for it and fight to the bitter end. They hole up in Holbeach House, where a standoff occurs that reaches the epic portions of the Alamo.
In the history textbooks, the Gunpowder Plot is typically made synonymous with Guy Fawkes. The series was successful in dramatizing the greater extent of the plot and developing the major players beyond Fawkes. It was also successful in conveying the chilling story of Christians killing Christians at the start of the seventeenth century, which would prove to be one of the most horrific in devastating and senseless wars of religion in Western Europe.
