Oates

Oates, Titus, was born about 1650. He was expelled about 1675-1676 from a naval chaplaincy. In 1678 he set about piecing together the story of a plot to murder the king, in which he did not hesitate to implicate the queen and the Duke of York. The story hit off the mood of the people, and, when the magistrate before whom the depositions were taken was murdered, and letters from the Duke of York's secretary were discovered asking for money from France, public indignation broke loose, and, in spite of all efforts to do justice, many innocent people were put to death on the flimsiest evidence. In a year the storm had exhausted itself and Oates retired into private life with a handsome pension. On the accession of James, Oates was tried for perjury, convicted, and sentenced to imprisonment for life, exposure in the pillory, and a flogging. He lived until 1705 in the enjoyment of a pension granted by William III., and concocted another plot with the aid of William Fuller.