Transcript gunpowder plot

V For Vendetta
and History
THE ENGLISH REFORMATION
•
England pursued independence from the Catholic
church in the 1520’s
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King Henry VIII wanted a divorce, the Pope would
not grant it.
•
Henry VIII outlined a path for England to “secede
from Catholicism”.
•
Henry came into direct conflict with his faithful
Chancellor and devout Catholic Thomas More
•
More was executed for refusing to accept the key
tenants of the English Reformation
•
England had become “Anglican”, a new church
created with the Monarch as the key religious
leader.
ENGLAND DURING THE REFORMATION YEARS
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As was the pattern across European History England’s transformation from Catholicism to
Anglicanism was tense.
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Many Catholics felt isolated in this new atmosphere.
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A variety of movements such as Puritanism began to emerge
GUY FAWKES AND THE GUNPOWDER PLOT
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Into that vacuum stepped a Catholic revolutionary named Guy Fawkes.
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Fawkes was part of a group of Catholics in England who felt alienated with the political
and religious environment of England.
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Fawkes and a group of Catholics launched a plot to blow up Parliament and overthrow the
Monarch James I in order to restore a Catholic to the throne.
V FOR VENDETTA
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The film evokes the Gunpowder plot to illustrate the political tensions in futuristic England
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The main character “V” embodies the historical character Fawkes as a tormented
revolutionary looking to uproot tyranny.