conspiracy
Sign in to savethumb|230px|right|Illustration of the conspirators in the Gunpowder Plot, a secret plan devised in 1605 to blow up the [[Parliament of England. The plot was a failed attempt at regicide against King James I by a group of English Catholics.]]
AI overview
A conspiracy is a secret plan made by a group of people to do something illegal or harmful, like the Gunpowder Plot of 1605 when English Catholics secretly planned to blow up Parliament. Understanding conspiracies matters because they can pose serious threats to public safety and security, as demonstrated by this historical attempt on the life of King James I.
AI-generated from the Wikipedia summary — may contain errors.
Article
4 sectionsContents
- Etymology
- Types of conspiracies
- References
- External links
thumb|230px|right|Illustration of the conspirators in the Gunpowder Plot, a secret plan devised in 1605 to blow up the [[Parliament of England. The plot was a failed attempt at regicide against King James I by a group of English Catholics.]]
A conspiracy, also known as a plot, ploy, or scheme, is a plan or agreement between people (called conspirers or conspirators) for an unlawful or harmful purpose, such as murder, treason, or corruption, especially with a political motivation, while keeping their agreement secret from the public or from other people affected by it. In a political sense, conspiracy refers to a group of people united in the goal of subverting established political power structures. This can take the form of usurping or altering them, or even continually illegally profiteering from certain activities in a way that weakens the establishment with help from various political authorities. Depending on the circumstances, a conspiracy may also be a crime or a civil wrong. The term generally connotes, or implies, wrongdoing or illegality on the part of the conspirators, as it is commonly believed that people would not need to conspire to engage in activities that were lawful and ethical, or to which no one would object.