Popish Plot

American  

noun

1. an imaginary conspiracy against the crown of Great Britain on the part of English Roman Catholics, fabricated in 1678 by Titus Oates as a means of gaining power.

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Popish Plot British  

noun

1. a supposed conspiracy (1678) to murder Charles II of England and replace him with his Catholic brother James: in reality a fabrication by the informer Titus Oates

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Example Sentences

Although Citt and Bumpkin was the first of L'Estrange's Popish Plot pamphlets written in dialogue, he was thoroughly familiar with the form and had often employed it in his polemic skirmishes during the Civil War.

From Citt and Bumpkin (1680) by L'Estrange, Sir Roger

Titus Oates, who claimed to have discovered the "Popish Plot," was a man of the most execrable character.

From History of the Negro Race in America From 1619 to 1880. Vol 1 Negroes as Slaves, as Soldiers, and as Citizens by Williams, George Washington

The petitions themselves were phrased inoffensively enough, stressing the fact that the Popish Plot had created a state of national emergency and requesting that Parliament be called to deal with this danger.

From Citt and Bumpkin (1680) by L'Estrange, Sir Roger

It is unnecessary to go minutely into the details of the Popish Plot.

From The Knickerbocker, or New-York Monthly Magazine, May 1844 Volume 23, Number 5 by Clark, Lewis Gaylord

It was in this mood of failure and disappointment that the Popish Plot found him.

From History of the English People, Volume VI Puritan England, 1642-1660; The Revolution, 1660-1683 by Green, John Richard