Rienzi by Edward Bulwer-lytton — Read

It was as a thunderbolt in a serene day -- the reverse of the Tribune in / the zenith of his power, in the abasement of his foe; when, with but a / handful of brave Romans, determined to be free, he might have crushed / for ever the antagonist power to the Roman liberties -- have secured the / rights of his country, and filled up the measure of his own renown. Such / a reverse was the very mockery of Fate, who bore him through disaster, / to abandon him in the sunniest noon of his prosperity.

The next morning not a soul was to be seen in the streets; the shops / were shut -- the churches closed; the city was as under an interdict. The / awful curse of the papal excommunication upon the chief magistrate of / the Pontifical City, seemed to freeze up all the arteries of life. The / Legate himself, affecting fear of his life, had fled to Monte Fiascone, / where he was joined by the Barons immediately after the publication of / the edict. The curse worked best in the absence of the execrator.