Robert Catesby was an Englishman born in 1573, best known as the leader of the Gunpowder Plot of 1605. He was a devout Catholic during a time when Catholics faced severe persecution in England. Catesby aimed to overthrow the Protestant government and replace it with a Catholic monarch. Catesby and his co-conspirators planned to blow up the House of Lords during the State Opening of Parliament, intending to kill King James I and other officials. The plot was discovered, leading to Catesby's death in a standoff with authorities in 1605, marking a significant event in English history.