The Weekely Newes

London: Printed for JEFFREY CHORLTON, and are to be Sold at his Shop, at the great North
Door of St. Paul's, 1606. - MUNDAY, 31ST JANUARY, 1606.

A BRIEF DISCOURSE upon the Arraignment and Execution of the eight traytors--Digby, the two Winters, Graunt, Rookewood, Keyes, Bates and Johnson, alias Guy Fawkes, four of which were executed in St. Paul's Churchyard, in London, upon Thursday, the 27th last, the other four in the Old Palace yard, in Westminster, over against the Parliament House, and with a relation of the other traytors which were executed at Worcester.

NOT to aggravate the sorrow of the living in the shame of the dead, but to dissuade the idolatrously blind from seeking their own destruction, the following account is written of the carrage of the eight papists herein named, of their little show of sorrow, their usage in prison, and their obstinacy to their end. First for their offence--it is so odious in the ears of all human creatures that it could hardly be believed that so many monsters in nature should carry the shapes of men--murder! Oh! it is the crying sin of the world, and such an intended murder as, had it taken effect, would have made a world to cry; and, therefore, the horror thereof must needs be hateful to the whole world to hear it. My intent is chiefly to make report of the manner of their Execution: for after their apprehension in the country they were brought up to London upon teh appearance of their foul treason before his Majesties most honourable Council, they were, by their commandment, committed to his majesty's Tower of London, where they wanted nothing that, in the mercy of a Christian Prince, was thought fit, and indeed too good for so unchristian offenders.

After the traytors went from the Tower by water, and came to Westminster, before they came into the hall they made some half-hour stay or more in the Star Chamber, wether being brought and remaining till the Court was all ready to hear them. It was strange to note their carriage even in their very countenances--some hanging down the head as if their hearts were full of doggedness, and others focing a stern look as if they would "frear death with a frown," never seeming to pray--unless it were by the dozen upon their beads--and taking tobacco as if that hanging were no trouble to them; craving mercy of neither God nor the King for their offences, and making their conscience, as it were, as wide of the mind, and to the very Gates of Hell to be the cause of their Hellish courses to make a work meritorious.

Coming into the Hall, and upon the scaffold at the bar, they all pleaded "not guilty," but they were all found "Guilty."

Digby--without craving mercy or favour of either God or the King--made only five requests: That his wife might have her jointure; his children the lands entayled by his father; his sisters their legacies in his hands unpaid; his debts paid; and for his death, to be beheaded and not hanged.

Robert Winter, in like manner, thinking himself already have a saint for his whole villainy, said little to any purpose, but only made a request to the King for mercy towards his brother in regard of his offence, as he said, "Through his only persuasion." His brother said little, but, with a guilty conscience, swallowed up a concealed grief with little show of sorrow for that time.

Graunt, stubborn in his idolatry, seemed nothing penitent for his villainy, asked little mercy; but as it were, careless of grace, received the doom of his desert.

Rookewood, out of a studied speech, would fain ahve made his idolatry and bringing up an excuse for the foul deed, but he had his judgment with the rest of the traytors. Now, after their condemnation and judgment they were sent to the Tower of London, and when the day of execution arrived they were drawn upon sledges and hurdles into Saint paul's Churchyard, four of them--namely, Everard Digby, the elder Winter, Graunt, and Bates.

First up went Digby, a man of goodly personage and a manly aspect, but with vain and superstitious crossing of himself he betook himself to his Latin prayers, mumbling to himself, refusing to have the prayers of any but the Roman Catholicks, went up the ladder, and, with the help of the hangman, made an end to his wicked days in the world.

After him Winter went up the scaffold, and staid not long for his execution. Then came Graunt, who followed him, showing how so bloody a religion can make such bloody consciences. Then came Bates, and when he was hanged the Executioners prepared to Draw and Quarter them; and when this was done the business of the day was ended.

The next day being Friday, were drawn from the Tower to the Old Palace yard in Westminster [T]homas Winter, Rookewood, Keyes, and Fawkes. Winter went first up the scaffold, and , he died a true Catholic, with a very pale face and dead colour, he went up the ladder, and, after a swing or two with the halter, to the quartering block was drawn, and there quickly despatched.

Next came Rookewood, who protested to die in his idolatry a Romish Catholick, went up the ladder, hanging till he was almost dead, then was drawn to the block, where he gave up his last gasp.

Then came Keyes, who was so sturdy a villain that he would not wait the hangman's turn, but turned himself off with such a leap that he broke the halter with the swing; but after his fall he was drawn to the block, and there his bowels withdrawn, and he was divided into four parts.

Last of all came the great Devil of all, Guy Fawkes alias Johnson, who should have put fire to the powder. His body being weak with the torture and sickness he was scarce able to go up the ladder, yet, with much ado, by the help of the hangman, went high enough to break his neck by the fall. He made no speech, but with his crosses and idle ceremonies made his end upon the gallows and the block, to the great joy of all beholders that the land was ended of so wicked a villainy.

WORCESTER, January 23???, 1606.

Two Traytors where here executed, one Perkins and his man, of the receiving and concealing of other Traytors. God be blessed for it.

The Great Speech of Sir Edward Philip, Knight, his majesty's Sergeant at Law, when he opened the Indictment, was to this effect:

The matter that is now to be offered to you my Lords the Commoners and to the Trial of you the Knights and Gentlemen of the Jury is a matter of Treason, but of such horror and monstrous nature that man never before now--

: The Tongue of Man never delivered.; The Ear of Man never heard.; The Heart of Man never conceited.

Nor the Malice of Hellish or Earthly Devill ever practised.
For if it be abominable to murder the least,
If to touch God's anointed be to oppose themselves to God,
If (by blood) to subvert Princes, States, and Kingdoms be hateful to God and Men, as all true Christians must acknowledge,
Then how much more than too, too monstrous shall all Christian Hearts judge the honour of this treason to murder and subvert

: Such a King,; Such a Queen,; Such a Prince,; Such a Progeny,; Such a State,; Such a Government,; So complete and absolute; That God approves,; The world admires,; All true English Hearts honour and reverence,; The Pope and his Disciples onely envies and maligns.

The Proceeding wherein is properly to be divided into Three General Heads:

: First: Matter of Declaration.; Secondly: Matter of Aggravation.; Thirdly: Matter of Probation.

Myself am limited to deal only with the matetr of Declaration, and that is contained within the compass of the Indictment onely.

For the other two I am to leave to him to whose place it belongeth.

The substance of which Declaration consisted in Four Parts:

: First: In the Persons and Qualities of the Conspirators.; Secondly: In the matter conspired.; Thirdly: In the mean and manner of the proceeding and execution of the Conspiracy.; And Fourthly: Of the end and purpose why it was conspired.

As Concerning the First being the Persons:

They were	Garnet	}
	Gerrard	} Jesuits not then taken.
	Tesimond	}

	Thomas Winter	}
	Guy Fawkes	}
	Robert Keyes	}
	Thomas Bates	} Conspirators at the bar.
	Everard Digby	}
	Ambrose Rookewood	}
	John Graunt	}
	Robert Winter	}

	Robert Catesby	}
	Thomas Piercy	} Slain in the Rebellion.
	John Wright	}
	Christopher Wright	}

	Francis Tresham	Lately dead.

All grounded Romanists and corrupted scholars of so irreligious and traiterous a school.

As Concerning the Second, which is the Matter Conspired, it was:

: First: To Deprive the King of his Rights.; Secondly: To Murder the King, the Queen, and the Prince.; Thirdly: To Stir Rebellion and Sedition in the Kingdom.; Fourthly: To Bring a Miserable Destruction among the Subjects.; Fifthly: To Change, Alter, and Subvert the Religion here Established.; Sixthly: To Ruinate the State of the Commonwealth, and to bring in Strangers to invade it.

As Concerning the Third, which is the Mean and Manner how to Compass and Execute the Same:

They did all conclude:

: First: That the King and his People (the Papists excepted) were Hereticks.; Secondly: That they were all Cursed and Excommunicated by the Pope.; Thirdly: That no heretick should be King.; Fourthly: That it was lawful and Meritorious to Kill and destroy the King and all the said Hereticks.

The Mean to Effect it they concluded to be that:

: First: The King, the Queen, the Prince, the Lords Spiritual and Temporal, the Knights and Burgesses of the Parliament should be Blown up with Powder.; Second: That the whole Royal Male Issue should be destroyed.; Third: That they would take into their custody the King's daughters, Elizabeth and mary, and proclaim the lady Elizabeth Queen.; Four: That they should sign a proclamation in the name of Elizabeth in which no mention should be made of alteration of religion, nor that they were parties to the Treason, until they had raised power to perform the same, and then to proclaim all grievance in the kingdom should be reformed.

That they also took several oathes, and received the sacrament, first for secresie and secondly for prosecution, except they were discharged thereof by three of them.

That after the destruction of the King, the Queen, the Prince, and Royal Male issue, the Lords Spiritual and Temporal, the Knights and Burgesses, hey should notify the same to Foreign States, and thereupon Sir Edmund Baynam--an attainted person of treason, and styling himself prince of the damned crew--should be sent and make the same known to the Pope and crave his aid, an Ambassador fit both for the message and person to be sent betwixt the Pope and the Devil. That the Parliament, being prorogued till the 7th of February, they in December made a mine under the House of Parliament, proposing to place their powder there; but, the Parliament being then further adjourned till the 3rd of October, they in Lent following hired the vault, and placed therein twenty barrels of powder.

That they took to them Robert Winter, Graunt, and Rookewood, giving them the oaths and sacrament, as aforesaid, as to provide munition.

20 July: They laid in more ten barrels of barrel, laying upon them divers great bars of iron and pieces of timber and great massive stones, and covering the same with faggots, &c.;

20 Septemb: They lay in more four hogsheads of powder, with other stones and bars of iron thereon.

4 Novem. (the parliament being prorogued to the 5): At eleven o'clock at night Fawkes had prepared, by the procurement of the rest, touchwood and matches to give fire to the powder the next day.

That the treason being miraculously discovered they put themselves and procured others to enter into open Rebellion, and gave out most untruly it was for that the papists' throats were to be cut.

The Oath of the Conspirators:

: You shall swear by the blessed Trinity, and by the Sacrament you now propose to receive, never to disclose directly or indirectly, by word or circumstance, the matter that shall be proposed to you to keep secret--nor desert from the execution thereof until the rest shall give you leave.

The Discovery of the Conspiracy:--The following is a copy of the letter which was left at the house of Lord Monteagle, and which happily led to the discovery of this most horrible conspiracy:

: "My Lord,--Out of the love that I bear to some of your friends I have a care of your preservation, therefore I would advise you, as you tender your life, to devise some excuse to shift of your attendance at this parliament: for God and man have concurred to punish the wickedness of this time. And think not slightly of this advertisement, but retire yourself into your own country, where you may expect the event in safety. For though there be no appearance of any stir, yet I say they shall receivee a terrible blow this Parliament, and yet they shall not see who hurt them. This counsel is not to be contemned, because it may do you good, and can do you no harm, for the danger is passed as soon as you have burnt this letter, and I hope God will give you the grace to make good use of it--to whose holy protection I commend you."

The letter was without date or subscription, and the hand in which it was written was hardly legible, and the contents of it so perplexed, that the Lord knew as little what to make of it as whence it came. But, however, since it respected more than himself he had not thought fit to conceal it, and presently repaired to Whitehall, and put it into the hands of the Earl of Salisbury, the principal Secretary of State. The Earl commended the Lord for his care and fidelity, and told him that, though there seemed to be little in it, yet because of the reports that he had received from abroad that the Papists, this Session of parliament, would be very busy and insolent in their demands for toleration upon some prospect they had of being in a position to demand it, and also because nothing that concerned the safety of his Majesty, and the peace of his Government, ought to be slighted, he would advise with others of his majesty's council about it. Accordingly he showed it to the Lord Chamberlain, to the Lord High Admiral, the Earls of Worcester and Northampton, and all were of the same mind with the secretary, and concluded it fit to deliver to the King at his return from Royston, when he came from hunting.

On the King's return the Earl presented him with it, and told him how it came into his hands. After reading of it, the King made a pause, and then reading it again, said: "That there seemed somewhat in it extraordinary, and what was by no means to be neglected."

The Earl replied "That it seemed to him to be written either by a madman or a fool, for what else could be guilty of saying, 'The danger is past as soon as you have burnt the letter.' For what danger could there be in that which the burning of the letter would put an end to."

But the King considered the smartness of the style and method what was said before--"That they should receive a terrible blow, and yet should not see who hurt them," did conclude, as he was walking and musing in the gallery, that the danger must be sudden, and like the blowing up by gunpowder, for what else could the Parliament be in danger of?

It was tne resolved that the houses and rooms around the Parliament House should be searched, and that same evening, the Lord Chamberlain, accompanied by Lord Monteagle, Sir Thomas Knevet, and others, proceeded to view a house, where they found in a vault under ground, great store of billets, faggots, and coal, brought there, as they were told, for the use of Mr. Piercy; and they espied Fawkes standing in a corner of the cellar, who said "That he was Mr. Piercy's servant, and left there by him for the keeping of the house." Upon the naming of Piercy, Lord Monteagle told the Chamberlain that he suspected Piercy to be the author of the letter, and as this increased the suspicions, when it was reported by the Lord Chamberlain t the King, in the rpesence of the Lord Admiral, Lord Treasurer, the Earls of Worcester, Northampton and Salisbury, it was resolved that further search should be made what was that great pile of fuel in such a house where Piercy had so little occasion to reside. At midnight, Sir Thomas Knevet, with a small aprty of armed men, repaired thither, and found Fawkes standing at the door booted and spurred, whom he at once apprehended.

Upon him were three matches, a tinder-box, and a dark lantern. The King was informed of it as well as the Privy Council, while the arch traytor was brought to the Tower of London.

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