The Prince - Machiavelli

The Prince

Machiavelli saw the drastic changes during the Renaissance Italy. In his novel The Prince, he explains that strong political leadership was more important than anything else, during this time. Also having a strong government was the most important element to society.

Renaissance Italy was a collection of several city-states, which contained internal fighting between powerful families. During this era the pope’s power was weakened and money controlled power instead of noble birth. Machiavelli saw how quarrelling weakened the area. He states in the novel that the princes needed to be harsh in their treatment of both mixed and new principalities. To avoid against rebellions, the prince must be very harsh, disarm the populace, and always be cautious.

It is laws and sound military forces that make a state and its rulers what they are. If a prince is able to create laws that are good and enforce them, then he is known as a capable ruler.

Mercenaries and auxiliaries were considered dangerous as the enemy itself. They are ambitious, undisciplined, faithless and disorganized. The problem with mercenaries is their lack of money. Auxiliary troops could easily be bribed or persuaded to join the enemy. In the novel, The Prince, the only way to fight a war is to do so with your own troops.

War wasn’t something to take lightly. A prince is nothing unless he can withstand foreign invasion. States and nations are constantly trying to expand, Machiavelli says, a prince must protect his kingdom from these invasions. The only art expected of a ruler is war. A prince must have no others objective.

In order to be a successful ruler a prince wants its subjects to fear him. They also inspire love and avoided being hated. Machiavelli says,” It would be best to be both loved and feared. But since the two rarely come together, anyone compelled to choose will find greater security in being