<P> On 19 February 1604, shortly after he discovered that his wife, Queen Anne, had been sent a rosary from the pope via one of James's spies, Sir Anthony Standen, James denounced the Catholic Church . Three days later, he ordered all Jesuits and all other Catholic priests to leave the country, and reimposed the collection of fines for recusancy . James changed his focus from the anxieties of English Catholics to the establishment of an Anglo - Scottish union . He also appointed Scottish nobles such as George Home to his court, which proved unpopular with the Parliament of England . Some Members of Parliament made it clear that in their view, the "effluxion of people from the Northern parts" was unwelcome, and compared them to "plants which are transported from barren ground into a more fertile one". Even more discontent resulted when the King allowed his Scottish nobles to collect the recusancy fines . There were 5,560 convicted of recusancy in 1605, of whom 112 were landowners . The very few Catholics of great wealth who refused to attend services at their parish church were fined £ 20 per month . Those of more moderate means had to pay two - thirds of their annual rental income; middle class recusants were fined one shilling a week, although the collection of all these fines was "haphazard and negligent". When James came to power, almost £ 5,000 a year (equivalent to over £ 10 million in 2008) was being raised by these fines . </P> <P> On 19 March, the King gave his opening speech to his first English Parliament in which he spoke of his desire to secure peace, but only by "profession of the true religion". He also spoke of a Christian union and reiterated his desire to avoid religious persecution . For the Catholics, the King's speech made it clear that they were not to "increase their number and strength in this Kingdom", that "they might be in hope to erect their Religion again". To Father John Gerard, these words were almost certainly responsible for the heightened levels of persecution the members of his faith now suffered, and for the priest Oswald Tesimond they were a rebuttal of the early claims that the King had made, upon which the papists had built their hopes . A week after James's speech, Lord Sheffield informed the king of over 900 recusants brought before the Assizes in Normanby, and on 24 April a Bill was introduced in Parliament which threatened to outlaw all English followers of the Catholic Church . </P> <P> The conspirators' principal aim was to kill King James, but many other important targets would also be present at the State Opening, including the monarch's nearest relatives and members of the Privy Council . The senior judges of the English legal system, most of the Protestant aristocracy, and the bishops of the Church of England would all have attended in their capacity as members of the House of Lords, along with the members of the House of Commons . Another important objective was the kidnapping of the King's daughter, third in the line of succession, Princess Elizabeth . Housed at Coombe Abbey near Coventry, the Princess lived only ten miles north of Warwick--convenient for the plotters, most of whom lived in the Midlands . Once the King and his Parliament were dead, the plotters intended to install Elizabeth on the English throne as a titular Queen . The fate of Princes Henry and Charles would be improvised; their role in state ceremonies was, as yet, uncertain . The plotters planned to use Henry Percy, Earl of Northumberland, as Elizabeth's Protector, but most likely never informed him of this . </P> <P> Robert Catesby (1573--1605), a man of "ancient, historic and distinguished lineage", was the inspiration behind the plot . He was described by contemporaries as "a good - looking man, about six feet tall, athletic and a good swordsman". Along with several other conspirators, he took part in the Earl of Essex's rebellion in 1601, during which he was wounded and captured . Queen Elizabeth allowed him to escape with his life after fining him 4,000 marks (equivalent to more than £ 6 million in 2008), after which he sold his estate in Chastleton . In 1603 Catesby helped to organise a mission to the new king of Spain, Philip III, urging Philip to launch an invasion attempt on England, which they assured him would be well supported, particularly by the English Catholics . Thomas Wintour (1571--1606) was chosen as the emissary, but the Spanish king, although sympathetic to the plight of Catholics in England, was intent on making peace with James . Wintour had also attempted to convince the Spanish envoy Don Juan de Tassis that "3,000 Catholics" were ready and waiting to support such an invasion . Concern was voiced by Pope Clement VIII that using violence to achieve a restoration of Catholic power in England would result in the destruction of those that remained . </P>

Why did they want to blow up the houses of parliament
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