The leader of the group that planned the Gunpowder Plot was Robert Catesby. He was a wealthy and prominent Catholic in England during the 16th century and believed that the only way to restore Catholicism as the dominant religion in England was to overthrow the Protestant government. Catesby recruited several other Catholics, including Guy Fawkes, to carry out the plot to blow up the Houses of Parliament during a state opening in 1605. However, the plot was foiled, and Catesby, along with several other conspirators, was killed in a shootout with the authorities.