In eandem. English translation by James Sitar. Back to Latin text. Open Latin text in new window.

Introduction. This group of five elegies all focus on the Gunpowder Plot of 1605. November 5, or Guy Fawkes Day, celebrates the foiling of that plot, as does "In Quintum Novembris" (1626). The first three of these elegies are certainly Guy Fawkes Night poems; the fourth, "In inventorem Bombardae," is certainly on a related theme. King James I (6th of Scotland) died on 27 March 1625, so the following November 5th celebrations were the first following his death, occasioning much celebration, since he was King when the plot was hatched and foiled.

James. King James I of England (6th of Scotland) was the target, along with Parliament, in 1605 of the Gunpowder Plot. He died in March 1625.

beast. The "beast hiding in the seven hills" refers to the Pope, or the Bishop of Rome as he was politely referred to in Protestant England. Less politely, he was often identified with the seven-headed beast of Revelation 13:1.