Editing Popish Plot (section)

===Anti-Catholicism in the 17th century===
Anti-Catholic sentiment was a constant factor in how England perceived the events of the following decades: the [[Thirty Years War]] (1618–1648) was seen as an attempt by the Catholic Habsburgs to exterminate German Protestantism. Under the early Stuart Kings, fears of Catholic conspiracies were rampant and the policies of [[Charles I of England|Charles I]] – especially his church policies, which had a decidedly [[high church]] bent – were seen as pro-Catholic and likely induced by a Catholic conspiracy headed by Charles' Catholic queen, [[Henrietta Maria of France]]. This, together with accounts of Catholic atrocities in Ireland in 1641, helped trigger the [[English Civil War]] (1642–1649), which led to the abolition of the monarchy and a decade of Puritan rule tolerating most forms of Protestantism, but not Catholicism. The restoration of the monarchy in 1660 under [[Charles II of England|King Charles II]] brought a reaction against all religious dissenters outside the [[State religion#Anglicanism|established]] Church of England. Catholics still suffered under popular hostility and legal discrimination.

Anti-Catholic hysteria flared up lightly during the reign of Charles II, which saw disasters such as the [[Great Plague of London]] (1665) and the [[Great Fire of London]] (1666). Vague rumours blamed the fire on arson by Catholics and especially [[Jesuits]]. Kenyon remarks, "At [[Coventry]], the townspeople were possessed by the idea that the papists were about to rise and cut their throats ... A nationwide panic seemed likely, and as homeless refugees poured out from London into the countryside, they took with them stories of a kind which were to be familiar enough in 1678 and 1679."{{sfn|Kenyon|1985|p=10}}

Anti-Catholicism was fueled by doubts about the religious allegiance of the King, who had been supported by the Catholic powers during his exile, and had married a Portuguese Catholic princess, [[Catherine of Braganza]]. Charles formed an alliance with the leading Catholic power France against the Protestant Netherlands. Furthermore, Charles' brother and heir presumptive, [[James II of England|James, Duke of York]], had embraced Catholicism, although his brother forbade him to make any public avowal. In 1672, Charles issued the [[Declaration of Indulgence (1672)|Royal Declaration of Indulgence]], in which he suspended all [[English Penal Laws|penal law]]s against Catholics and other religious dissenters.<ref>Fraser, pp. 305–308; Hutton, pp. 284–85.{{Full citation needed|date=January 2014}}</ref> This fueled Protestant fears of increasing Catholic influence in England, and led to [[Charles II of England#Conflict with Parliament|conflict with parliament]] during the 1670s. In December 1677 an anonymous pamphlet (possibly by [[Andrew Marvell]]) spread alarm in London by accusing the Pope of plotting to overthrow the lawful government of England.{{sfn|Heald|1992|p=603}}