NICCOLO` MACHIAVELLI

THE CITY OF FLORENCE

 Machiavelli a lifelong citizen of Florence
 Italy divided into city states, not united nation
Unlike feudal Europe, northern Italy dominated by cities which
became major trading and economic centers
 Individual identities aided by mountainous geography
which prevented communication, etc.
While Catholic church important, distance allowed the city states
to be relatively independent
 Battle between states for power, constant changing of
governments & leaders
FLORENCE, ITALY
MACHIAVELLI (1469-1527)
Machiavelli raised in Florence
 Born at a time when there was continual struggle for power between city
states, church
Father was a well-known attorney
 Is thought Machiavelli family descended from Tuscan royalty
Educated in Florence, which was one of the leading educational centers in
Europe
At age 29, elected to office in Florence
 Part of a diplomatic council in charge of negotiation and military affairs
MACHIAVELLI’S CAREER
 As part of work, sent to the courts of Spain, France, Germany,
the Papacy in Rome, and a variety of the Italian city states
 Between 1503-1506, in charge of Florence’s militia
Preferred to used invested citizen soldiers rather than mercenaries,
a point he makes in The Prince
 In August, 1512 the Medici take control of Florence
Old ruling family, out the republic set up in Florence
 Machiavelli arrested and tortured, but is eventually allowed to
go free and into exile
While in exile is when he writes The Prince
MEANING; A GOOD OUTCOME EXCUSES
ANY WRONGS COMMITTED TO ATTAIN IT.

IF YOU COULD SAVE THE WORLD BY KILLING

SOMEONE, WOULD YOU DO IT?

If “Yes,” then a morality right

outcome justifies the immoral
means to achieve it.
 The morality of action

 The morality of the outcome

 The morality of the person performing the action

THE PRINCE
Machiavelli's most famous work, The Prince, was written in
1513 but only published after his death (1532; trans. 1640) It
describes the often crafty, cunning and unscrupulous methods
by which a prince can acquire and maintain political power.
The work immediately provoked controversy and was soon
condemned by Pope Clement VIII. This study is based on
Machiavelli's belief that a ruler is not constrained by
traditional ethical norms. In his view, a prince should be
concerned only with power and be bound only by rules that
would lead to success in political actions.
CHAPTER 1
HOW MANY KINDS OF PRINCIPALITIES THERE ARE,
AND BY WHAT MEANS THEY ARE ACQUIRED

A state can be:

 Republic
 Principality
Hereditary
New
CHAPTER 2

CONCERNING HEREDITARY PRINCIPALITIES

An hereditary principality is stable because the natural

prince has less reason and need to give offence
and unless extraordinary vices cause him to be hated, it is
reasonable to expect that his subjects will be naturally
well disposed towards him.
CHAPTER 3

COMPOSITE PRINCIPALITIES

Difficulties occur in a new principality. A new prince

is always compelled to injure those who have made
him the new ruler, subjecting them to the troops and
imposing the endless other hardships which his new
conquest entails.
To enter a new territory one needs the goodwill of the
inhabitants.
If the states share the same language and culture, it is easy
to hold them securely after destroying the line of the
former ruling prince. The new prince should not change
laws nor taxes.
If they have different languages, one must go live there in
person, or establish settlements.
The new prince should also protect small neighbouring
powers and weaken those which are strong.
The prudent ruler anticipates political disorders.
 CHAPTER 4

WHY THE KINGDOM OF DARIUS, CONQUERED

BY ALEXANDER, DID NOT REBEL AGAINST THE
SUCCESSORS OF ALEXANDER AT HIS DEATH

Principalities can be governed in two different ways: either

by a prince, with a body of servants, who assist him to
govern the kingdom as ministers by his favor and
permission; or by a prince and barons, who hold that
dignity by antiquity of blood and not by the grace of the
prince. In states governed by a prince and his servants,
the prince has more authority.
CHAPTER 5

CONCERNING THE WAY TO GOVERN CITIES OR

PRINCIPALITIES WHICH LIVED UNDER THEIR OWN
LAWS BEFORE THEY WERE ANNEXED

There are three courses for those who wish to hold them:
the first is to ruin them, the next is to reside there in
person, the third is to permit them to live under their
own laws, drawing a tribute, and establishing within it
an oligarchy which will keep it friendly to you.
CHAPTER 6

Concerning new principalities which are

acquired by one’s own arms and ability
The prince depends on his abilities
Private citizens become princes either through luck or
through ability
Those who become a prince through their own strength have
difficulty in gaining power
Establishing new state is always troublesome
 CHAPTER 7
Concerning new principalities which are acquired by
one’s own arms and good fortune

• Citizens who become princes through luck or the favor

of others find it easy to acquire their states, but difficult
to keep them
 CHAPTER 8

Concerning those who have obtained a principality

by wickedness
There are two(2) ways to become a prince:

 By criminal means or
 Private citizens choose a ruler from their fellow citizens
 CHAPTER 9
Concerning a Civil Principality

• When private citizens become rulers through the favor of

their fellow citizens, these may be called civil
principalities.