Machiavelli

Niccolo Machiavelli was a Florentine Politician, Diplomat, Philosopher, Historian, and Writer, and one of the most brilliant thinkers to emerge from the Renaissance. He is considered the Father of Modern Political Theory.

He was born on 3 May 1469 to a wealthy lawyer and during one of the most volatile periods in European History. The continent, dominated by Spain and France, was fraught with political uncertainties and wars. Florence, which had been ruled by the Medici Family since 1434 and had enjoyed its heyday under Lorenzo the Magnificent, was nearing the end of its glory. Machiavelli, who grew up reading works by Aristotle, Herodotus and Virgil, witnessed from the sidelines the Medicis being denounced for extravagance and misgovernment by Girolamo Savonarola, the fiery Dominican friar from the Convent of San Marco. Although Girolamo made a temporary peace with Lorenzo de Medici, his one-time benefactor, he called out for reforms again under Lorenzo's successor Piero, and finally in 1493, with Florentine public approval and French assistance, Piero was driven out. The First Florentine Republic was set up, but Savonarola's reform policy proved unpopular and he was himself removed from power and burnt in 1498. A Second Republic under Gonfaloniere Piero Soderini was established in 1498 and this marked Machiavelli's active emergence in public service.

He became a Secretary of the Ten (council) and, in this high-ranking capacity, he was employed in a great variety of diplomatic negotiations and met with important Heads of States like Cesare Borgia (1502), the King of France (1504, 1510-11), the Pope (1506), and the German Emperor Maximillian (1507-8). He wrote well-thought-out, perceptive accounts of these missions and, from the political experience gained, he advised Soderini in 1505 to establish an Italian Army. Four years later he himself was to lead this army to successfully free Pisa.

In 1512, however, the good life came to an end. The Republic was overthrown by the Spanish Army and the Medicis were reinstalled in Florence. Machiavelli now lost his job and in an effort perhaps to save himself is thought to have helped bring about the downfall of his patron Soderini. Quite ironically, he found himself arrested on the charge of this very conspiracy in 1513. Under torture though Machiavelli proved resolute, strongly denying any involvement, and as no concrete proof could be found against him he was released and subsequently pardoned. However, given his former prominence in the Republic, the Medicis refused to entrust him with public office and banished him instead to his country estate at San Casciano. Here, in order to sustain himself, Machiavelli took up the literary profession.

It was during this exile that he wrote his principle works, the 'Discourses on the First Decade of Titus Livius' (1531), 'The Prince' (1513), 'The History of Florence' (1525), 'The Art of War' (1521), a Life of Castruccio Castrancani (1520, unfinished), History of the Affairs of Lucca, an imitation of the Golden Ass of Apuleius, an essay on the Italian language, the play Mandragola (1524), and several other minor works.

'The Prince', of course, is the work he is most known for – notorious for too, it can be said – it is this single book that has given him his diabolical reputation and caused his name to be figured in the English language as the byword for hard-headed, cold-blooded and unscrupulous ambition.

The central idea of 'The Prince' is that in politics the end justifies the means, and in order to retain political power the ruler must, if necessary, resort to violent and unethical principles without harboring any qualms. Machiavelli does not advise against being moralistic, but he doesn't seem to think there is any point in it if it is at the expense of losing control of the State. The only important thing is staying in power and dealing effectively with every situation. There is no room for losers in Machiavelli's book. The politicians he praises include Alexander VI, Julius II and Cesare Borgia, none of them models of shining morality and actually universally reviled in their contemporary time. Not constrained by ethical evaluation, Machiavelli's interest in them is solely for their successful political and military careers.

To get a better idea of Machiavelli's philosophy, here are some quotes from 'The Prince' -

"Politics have no relations to morals".

"There is no avoiding war; it can only be postponed to the advantage of others".

"A prince never lacks legitimate reasons to break his promise."

"(Hence) It is necessary for a prince wishing to hold his own to know how to do wrong, and to make use of it or not according to necessity".

"Men judge generally more by the eye than by the hand, for everyone can see and few can feel. Every one sees what you appear to be, few really know what you are".

"You must know there are two ways of contesting, the one by the law, the other by force; the first method is proper to men, the second to beasts; but because the first is frequently not sufficient, it is necessary to have recourse to the second. Therefore it is necessary for a prince to understand how to avail himself of the beast and the man.

If men were entirely good this precept would not hold, but because they are bad, and will not keep faith with you, you too are not bound to observe it with them. Nor will there ever be wanting to a prince legitimate reasons to excuse this nonobservance".

"Because fortune is a woman, and if you wish to keep her under it is necessary to beat and ill-use her; and it is seen that she allows herself to be mastered by the adventurous rather than by those who go to work more coldly. She is, therefore, always, woman-like, a lover of young men, because they are less cautious, more violent, and with more audacity (bold, daring) command her".

"We have not seen great things done in our time except by those who have been considered mean; the rest have failed".

This remarkably concise book, written in 1513 and not published until after his death in 1532, was written expressly in order to get in the good graces of the Medici and thus resume his political career. This did not work to the extent Machiavelli had hoped for. The Medicis preferred to keep him at arm's length and he had to make do with minor commissions. In 1519, Leo X asked him to make a report on a Florentine State Reform and between 1521 to 1525 he was engaged in historiography work, with some diplomatic work thrown in now and then. In 1525, he helped the Medicis against the invading forces of the Emperor Charles V. Whatever he had personally suffered under them, he was a Florentine patriot and, although they ignored his political advise, he also thought that under the Medicis a united Italy would be possible. It was a vain hope. By mismanagement and misrule, the Medicis ensured their own final downfall. In May 1527 they were driven out and the Third Republic formed.

And Machiavelli, once more, found himself in awkward straits. Just as his work for the Second Republic had not endeared him to the Medicis, so also now the Third Republic took exception to his employment under the Medicis. This together with the brutally pragmatic observations made in 'The Prince' tainted his reputation to a fine degree and he was allowed no part in the new governing body.

His hopes shattered and already in ill-health, Machiavelli died only a few months later on 22 June 1527.

That same year, The Sack of Rome took place and the Pope was forced to form an alliance with the invader, Emperor Charles VII. Three years later, these two odd allies ended Florence's existence as an Independent State.

Two years after the end of Florence, in 1532, 'The Prince was published. It provoked outrage and wide condemnation, and the controversy was resolved by Pope Clement VII by subsequently banning the book.

'The Prince' is however one of the best text books on Political Maneuvering, and has been perused and quoted by world leaders past and present. And unlike most of them, Machiavelli, even if disconcerting, is at least honest in his aims and purportedly was so in his actual work as well.