There where the Mella's transparent waters La dové più con le sue lucid'onde
There where the Mella's transparent waters
seep into the meadows around my home,
giving life, winding through its shores,
leaving in its path flowers, soft green plants,

to the royal name which protects, shelters
our ancient splendors, there I'll build a temple
of ivory, with all within and around
it sacred and animating; and in its midst

there'll be a magnificent statue
made of gold with this inscription: Charles
Augustus, greater than any of the name;

around him conquered kings and like them
now the vicious and brutal Turk in flight
adds supreme weight and meaning to triumph.

La dové più con le sue lucid'onde
la picciol Mela le campagne infiora
de la mia patria, e che, girando, onora
de verdi erbe e bei fiori ambe le sponde,

al gran nome real, che copre e asconde
le glorie nove e quelle antiche ancora,
farò un tempio d'avorio e dentro e fora
mille cose vedransi alme e gioconde.

Starà nel mezzo una gran statua d'oro
e dirà un scritto: Questo è Carlo Augusto,
maggior di quanti mai ebber tal nome.

D'intorno i vinti regi, e al par di loro
fuggir vedrassi il Turco, empoi ed inguisto,
giungendo a' suoi trionfi altere some.

Sources:

Rizzardi 5:5; Chiapetti 5:7; 1995 Bullock 46:109. For Key see A Note on the Italian texts

Comments:

To Charles V; late July 1535, on his victory at Tunis. Her home is of course Brescia. Gambara's poem is influenced by Virgil's third Georgic. For commentary, variants, and paraphrase see 1995 Bullock pp. 109-10n. See three previous poems: Cantin le ninfe co' soavi accenti (The nymphs sing with such sweet accents), Mira 'l gran Carlo con pietoso affetto (Dear God look upon our great Emperor), and Quel che di tutto il bel ricco Oriente (He who showed himself proud and arrogant). The history of confused attributions over the poems of Gambara and Colonna includes attributions of the above to Colonna; see McAuliffe 197 in Colonna Bibliography.
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