St. Robert Southwell was an English Jesuit martyr who served as a clandestine missionary in post-Reformation England. There he ministered in secret for six years before he was arrested and imprisoned in the Tower of London. After three years of imprisonment and torture, he was convicted of high treason and executed by being hanged, drawn, and quartered.

During his time in England, Southwell witnessed the executions of many other Catholics, including those of people he knew personally. It's in this light, and in light of his own eventual martyrdom, that his poetry carries with it a special gravity. At once horrified and inspired by the martyrdoms he witnessed, Southwell wrote this paradox into his poetry, as reflected in these three poems.

"The Burning Babe", "A Child My Choice", and "I Die Alive" by St. Robert Southwell, as found in Lyra Martyrum: The Poetry of the English Martyrs https://www.clunymedia.com/product/lyra-martyrum/

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