Stephen Littleton (or Lyttelton) (circa 1575-1606), was an Englishman executed for his involvement in the

Gunpowder Plot The Gunpowder Plot of 1605, in earlier centuries often called the Gunpowder Treason Plot or the Jesuit Treason, was a failed assassination attempt against King James I by a group of provincial English Catholics led by Robert Catesby who sought ...

. He was born as the eldest son of George Littleton and Margaret Smith, daughter and heir to Richard Smith of Shirford, Warwickshire. George was the older brother of

Humphrey Littleton Humphrey Littleton, or Humphrey Lyttelton, died on 7 April 1606 at Red Hill outside Worcester. A member of the Lyttelton family, he was executed for his involvement in the Gunpowder plot. Robert Wintour and Stephen Littleton who had escaped fr ...

who was uncle to Stephen Littleton and the two were not cousins, which is incorrectly mentioned in some sources. Stephen Littleton was also related to John Littleton, who was in 1601 with the

Earl of Essex Earl of Essex is a title in the Peerage of England which was first created in the 12th century by King Stephen of England. The title has been recreated eight times from its original inception, beginning with a new first Earl upon each new cre ...

Uprising Rebellion, uprising, or insurrection is a refusal of obedience or order. It refers to the open resistance against the orders of an established authority. A rebellion originates from a sentiment of indignation and disapproval of a situation and ...

against

Queen Elizabeth I Elizabeth I (7 September 153324 March 1603) was Queen of England and Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death in 1603. Elizabeth was the last of the five House of Tudor monarchs and is sometimes referred to as the "Virgin Queen". El ...

. Littleton lived mainly in the

Holbeche House Holbeche House (also, in some texts, Holbeach or Holbeache) is a mansion located approximately north of Kingswinford, now in the Metropolitan Borough of Dudley but historically in Staffordshire.Aikin, L. p.244 Some members of the Gunpowder Plot ...

, the house the conspirators took after the gunfire had failed, and he was considered to have a prominent role in the Catholic community in the Midlands. Littleton has been described as very tall, with brown hair and with no or very little beard growth. Littleton did not know much about the

in advance, but instead he believed that

Robert Catesby Robert Catesby (c. 1572 – 8 November 1605) was the leader of a group of English Catholics who planned the failed Gunpowder Plot of 1605. Born in Warwickshire, Catesby was educated in Oxford. His family were prominent recusant Catholics, and ...

(the leader of the conspiracy) took people to an army to fight in Flanders; Catesby should also have offered Littleton a service in this army. After the conspiracy had failed on 5 November 1605, Littleton fled with several of the conspirators to Holbeche House. Once upon a time,

Robert Wintour Robert Wintour (1568 – 30 January 1606) and Thomas Wintour (1571 or 1572 – 31 January 1606), also spelt Winter, were members of the Gunpowder Plot, a failed conspiracy to assassinate King James I. Brothers, they were related to other consp ...

was asked if he could not investigate if his father-in-law John Talbot could assist the conspirators, but Wintour refused. Instead, Thomas Wintour and Littleton were allowed to go and investigate this. John Talbot, however, proved to be loyal to

King James I James VI and I (James Charles Stuart; 19 June 1566 – 27 March 1625) was King of Scotland as James VI from 24 July 1567 and King of England and Ireland as James I from the union of the Scottish and English crowns on 24 March 1603 until ...

and sent away Wintour and Littleton. When they were both on their way back to Holbeche House, they found out that some of the conspirators had died while the rest of them had moved the field. When they received this message, Littleton chose to flee on his own and he urged Wintour to do the same. Wintour did not listen to him but proceeded to Holbeche House, where he saw that the conspirators were alive, but some of them were injured. Robert Wintour was one of the conspirators who fled from Holbeche House on the night of 7–8 November and he met up with Littleton shortly thereafter. On 9 January 1606 they both were arrested. They had spent two months on a flight where they were hiding in barns and houses and at one time they had to block a drunk hunter who had discovered their hideaway. They were eventually revealed in Humphrey Littleton's home in

Hagley Hall Hagley Hall is a Grade I listed 18th-century house in Hagley, Worcestershire, the home of the Lyttelton family. It was the creation of George, 1st Lord Lyttelton (1709–1773), secretary to Frederick, Prince of Wales, poet and man of letters an ...

since a cook named John Finwood had informed the authorities about their retreat. Humphrey, who had managed to fly from his home in Hagley, was arrested later at Prestwood,

Staffordshire Staffordshire (; postal abbreviation Staffs.) is a landlocked county in the West Midlands region of England. It borders Cheshire to the northwest, Derbyshire and Leicestershire to the east, Warwickshire to the southeast, the West Midlands Cou ...

. Stephen Littleton was sentenced to death for his actions and was executed sometime in 1606 in

Stafford Stafford () is a market town and the county town of Staffordshire, in the West Midlands region of England. It lies about north of Wolverhampton, south of Stoke-on-Trent and northwest of Birmingham. The town had a population of 70,145 in t ...

, Staffordshire.

References

Bibliography

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Links

https://stephenlittleton.com {{DEFAULTSORT:Lyttelton, Stephen 1575 births 1606 deaths Executed people from Worcestershire People associated with the Gunpowder Plot