<P> By the time the plotters reconvened at the start of the old style new year on Lady Day, 25 March, three more had been admitted to their ranks; Robert Wintour, John Grant, and Christopher Wright . The additions of Wintour and Wright were obvious choices . Along with a small fortune, Robert Wintour inherited Huddington Court (a known refuge for priests) near Worcester, and was reputedly a generous and well - liked man . A devout Catholic, he married Gertrude Talbot, who was from a family of recusants . Christopher Wright (1568--1605), John's brother, had also taken part in the Earl of Essex's revolt and had moved his family to Twigmore in Lincolnshire, then known as something of a haven for priests . John Grant was married to Wintour's sister, Dorothy, and was lord of the manor of Norbrook near Stratford - upon - Avon . Reputed to be an intelligent, thoughtful man, he sheltered Catholics at his home at Snitterfield, and was another who had been involved in the Essex revolt of 1601 . </P> <P> In addition, 25 March was the day on which the plotters purchased the lease to the undercroft they had supposedly tunnelled near to, owned by John Whynniard . The Palace of Westminster in the early 17th century was a warren of buildings clustered around the medieval chambers, chapels, and halls of the former royal palace that housed both Parliament and the various royal law courts . The old palace was easily accessible; merchants, lawyers, and others lived and worked in the lodgings, shops and taverns within its precincts . Whynniard's building was along a right - angle to the House of Lords, alongside a passageway called Parliament Place, which itself led to Parliament Stairs and the River Thames . Undercrofts were common features at the time, used to house a variety of materials including food and firewood . Whynniard's undercroft, on the ground floor, was directly beneath the first - floor House of Lords, and may once have been part of the palace's medieval kitchen . Unused and filthy, its location was ideal for what the group planned to do . </P> <P> In the second week of June Catesby met in London the principal Jesuit in England, Father Henry Garnet, and asked him about the morality of entering into an undertaking which might involve the destruction of the innocent, together with the guilty . Garnet answered that such actions could often be excused, but according to his own account later admonished Catesby during a second meeting in July in Essex, showing him a letter from the pope which forbade rebellion . Soon after, the Jesuit priest Oswald Tesimond told Garnet he had taken Catesby's confession, in the course of which he had learnt of the plot . Garnet and Catesby met for a third time on 24 July 1605, at the house of the wealthy catholic Anne Vaux in Enfield Chase . Garnet decided that Tesimond's account had been given under the seal of the confessional, and that canon law therefore forbade him to repeat what he had heard . Without acknowledging that he was aware of the precise nature of the plot, Garnet attempted to dissuade Catesby from his course, to no avail . Garnet wrote to a colleague in Rome, Claudio Acquaviva, expressing his concerns about open rebellion in England . He also told Acquaviva that "there is a risk that some private endeavour may commit treason or use force against the King", and urged the pope to issue a public brief against the use of force . </P> <P> According to Fawkes, 20 barrels of gunpowder were brought in at first, followed by 16 more on 20 July . The supply of gunpowder was theoretically controlled by the government, but it was easily obtained from illicit sources . On 28 July, the ever - present threat of the plague again delayed the opening of Parliament, this time until Tuesday 5 November . Fawkes left the country for a short time . The King, meanwhile, spent much of the summer away from the city, hunting . He stayed wherever was convenient, including on occasion at the houses of prominent Catholics . Garnet, convinced that the threat of an uprising had receded, travelled the country on a pilgrimage . </P>

Who was involved in the gunpowder plot and what did they do