Ense petit placidam sub libertate quietem

Ense petit placidam sub libertate quietem is a Latin passage and the official motto of the U.S. Commonwealth of Massachusetts and the University of Massachusetts Amherst. The phrase is often loosely translated into English as "By the sword we seek peace, but peace only under liberty." The literal translation, however, is "she seeks with the sword a quiet peace under liberty." The "she" in question refers to the word "manus" from the full phrase "manus haec inimica tyrannis ense petit placidam sub libertate quietem," which means "this hand, hostile to tyrants, seeks with the sword a quiet peace under liberty."