Holbeche House

Infobox Historic building
name= Holbeche House


caption= Holbeche House in 2007 is a care home
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location_town= near Dudley in Staffordshire
location_country= England
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Holbeche House (also, in some texts, Holbeach), a mansion located near Kingswinford, [ [http://www.britannia.com/history/holbeche.html Holbeche house at Brittania.com] accessed 18 October 2007] on the borders of Staffordshire,Aikin, L. p.244] is known to have been a sanctuary for the conspirators in the Gunpowder Plot on 7 November 1605, before they were surrounded by Richard Walsh (the sheriff of Worcester) and his men the very next day. There and then a battle ensued, in which the sheriff and his men had the upper hand, after an accidental explosion of the conspirator's gunpowder supply, and which left Robert Catesby, Thomas Percy and others dead.

Background

The Gunpowder Plot constituted what was only one of many assassination attempts on James I of England. The Plot itself involved the blowing up of the Houses of Parliament during the State Opening of Parliament, and, furthermore, both the abduction of the royal children and the causing an uprising in the Midlands. The conspirators were a small party of provincial English Catholic conspirators, who would later be executed for this act of High treason. However, it has been suggested that there may possibly have been some government collaboration with the plot. [Hugh Ross Williamson, "The Gunpowder Plot", 1951] In commemoration of the Plot, bonfires are lit on the 5th of November annually as part of a tradition in several countries.

The battle

It was after the failure of the Plot, and a failed revolt in the Midlands, that the remaining conspirators took shelter in Holbeche House. The house was the family seat of someone involved in the plot, Stephen Lyttelton. After they were surrounded, and the battle resumed, the men hiding there resolved to defend the house, as defensible as it was, as long and as well as they could. However, some of the conspirators' gunpowder stores, which had gotten wet and were drying in front of an open fire, exploded, wounding several of them, notably blinding John Grant, and destroying sections of the roof. Still, the battle continued, the men's resolve apparently unshaken. However, after the death of Percy (killed by his own hand), as well as three others, defeat became an inevitability. Stephen Lyttelton and Robert Wintour fled to seek the help of Stephen's uncle Humphrey Littleton. Those that remained were forced to surrender, and were transported to London as prisoners.

Aftermath

Lyttelton and Winter, having narrowly escaped from the battle at Holbeach House, spent several weeks hiding secretly in a barn; without food and with only little water, they both endured terrible conditions during this time. However, they were effectively rescued by one Humphrey Littleton and taken to a house in Hagley Park, where they took refuge. However, ultimate escape was never achieved; while it is not clear what happened to Stephen Lyttelton, it is known that Winter was caught, after two months as an escaped fugitive, in Hagley Park.After a trial, in which almost all of the conspirators pleaded not guilty, the remaining conspirators of the Plot were hanged, drawn and quartered.

Notes

References

*Lucy Aikin "Memoirs of the Court of King James the First ". 1822
*Katherine Thomson "Recollections of literary characters and celebrated places". 1854
*John Bond "The Hazards of Life and All That: A Look at Some Accidents and Safety Curiosities, Past and Present ". CRC Press, 1996. ISBN 0750303603