Another on "On the Gunpowder Plot."

by John Milton — a poem card from Justes Mots

This brief Latin poem reflects on the Gunpowder Plot, noting the irony that Rome seeks to elevate to the stars one it had previously condemned to Hell and the underworld. Milton's cryptic meditation invokes classical imagery of divine judgment and reversal of fortune. The poem's exact historical reference and fragmented English context make it primarily a scholarly curiosity.

Quem modo Roma suis devoverat impia diris,
Et Styge damnarat Taenarioque sinu,
Hunc vice mutata jam tollere gestit ad astra,
Et cupit ad superos evehere usque Deos.…

Themes: gratitude · friendship · admiration · reflection