OATES, TITUS (1649-1705), English conspirator, was the son of Samuel Oates (1610-1683), an Anabaptist preacher, chap lain to Pride, and afterwards rector of All Saints' Church, Has tings. On leaving Cambridge he took Anglican orders, and offi ciated in several parishes, Hastings among them. Having brought malicious charges in which his evidence was rejected, he nar rowly escaped prosecution for perjury. He next obtained a chap laincy in the navy, from which he was speedily dismissed. He now applied for help to Dr. Israel Tonge, a rector who was ob sessed with the idea of Roman Catholic plots; Oates was to help him in unravelling the plots. To this end it was decided that Oates should pose as a Catholic. He spent some time at the Jesuit colleges of Valladolid and St. Omer, being expelled from both.
Returning in June 1678 to Tonge, he forged a plot by piecing together things true and false, or true facts falsely interpreted, and by inventing treasonable letters and accounts of preparations for military action. The whole story was written by Oates in Greek characters, copied into English by Tonge, and finally told to one of Charles II.'s confidential servants named Kirkby. Kirkby having given the king his information, Oates was sent for. He gave details, in 43 articles, of the plot and the persons who had engaged to assassinate Charles. Charles at no time believed this incredible farrago. To bolster up the case a fresh packet of five forged letters was concocted ; but the forgery was transparent, and even Sir William Jones, the attorney-general, though a violent upholder of the plot, dared not produce them as evidence.
Oates now made an affidavit before Sir Edmond Berry God frey (q.v.) to an improved edition of his story, in 8r articles. Among the persons named was Coleman, secretary to the duchess of York, whom Godfrey knew, and to whom he sent word of the charges. Coleman in turn informed the duke, who induced Charles to compel Oates to appear before the privy council. Here Oates was exposed by a few simple questions. But among the papers seized at Oates's request were Coleman's, and in them were found copies of letters written to Pere la Chaise, suggesting that Louis should furnish him with money, which he would use in the French and Catholic interest among members of parliament. Among .
them, too, were these passages: "Success will give the greatest blow to the Protestant religion that it has received since its birth"; "we have here a mighty work upon our hands, no less than the conversion of three kingdoms, and by that perhaps the utter subduing of a pestilent heresy, which has so long domi neered over great part of the northern world." The credit of Oates was thus, in the eyes of the people, re-established, and Coleman and others named were imprisoned.
On Oct. 12, occurred the murder of Godfrey. On Oct. 2 I , parlia ment met, and Oates was called before the House. A new witness was wanted to support Oates's story, and in November a man named William Bedloe came forward. At first he remembered little ; by degrees he remembered everything that was wanted. Oates then accused the queen before Charles of high treason, and carried his tale before the House of Commons. The Commons voted for the queen's removal from court, but, the Lords refusing to concur, the matter dropped. It was not, however, until 1679 that the slaughter of Jesuits and other Roman Catholics upon Oates's testimony and that of his accomplices was checked. Sir George Wakeman, the queen's physician, was accused of pur posing to poison the king, and the queen was named as being concerned in the plot. Sir Philip Lloyd proved Oates to have perjured himself, and Wakeman was acquitted. On June 26, 168o, upon Oates's testimony, the duke of York was presented as a recusant at Westminster. But the panic had worn itself out, and Oates retired on a pension. Shortly before the death of Charles, James brought, and won, a civil action against Oates, with damages of L100,000; in default of payment Oates was taken to prison; while there he was indicted for perjury, and was tried in May 1685, soon after the accession of James II. He received a severe sentence with repeated floggings, which was • expected to kill him, but to the astonishment of all he survived.