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On Niccolò Machiavelli - The Prince

Italy in the 15th century is a pretty rough place. How is a prince supposed to gain power? This book offers some excellent guidance.

Italy in the 15th century is a pretty rough place. Armies from France, Spain and Switzerland are invading. Rulers of Italian cities and states constantly attack, deceive and kill each other. There are three popes. Three. With armies.

How is a prince supposed to gain power? And keep it?

This book offers some excellent guidance.

Pragmatism

First of all, let's throw overboard theory and religion. Niccolò Machiavelli says it is all about pragmatism. Power is the goal, so act like it. Sometimes it's even okay to do a few evil things. As long as it helps you achieve something greater.

A man who wants to act virtuously in every way necessary comes to grief among so many who are not virtuous. To rule means to be prepared to not be virtuous.

Now that's a brutal statement.

Church

The book is written in a time (i.e. the Renaissance) when the Church was powerful. Art and science were thriving, but had to constantly look over their shoulder to watch the all seeing eye of the Church.

Yet The Prince did not exactly beat about the bush. And the Church had an opinion about that.

This book is not in line with my moral standards - The Pope

So they placed it on the List of Banned Books. Niccolò was considered evil. However, in his view, ends may justify evil means. It is all about the context in which one acts. He provides examples of princes acting morally correct in the moment, but ultimately driving their state into defeat and their people into misery.

Whether to act good or bad depends on the circumstances. Be in control of your own faith, instead of waiting to see what will happen. A powerful prince understands the bigger picture.

Summary

The book is divided in four parts.

1. How to get power

How you get power is crucial - some ways are much easier than others.

4 different ways to form a princedom
  • Hereditary - Inheriting power requires a family with power. Relatively easy to maintain, just continue what your ancestors were doing.  Highly recommended.
  • New - A completely new princedom may be formed by your own force, power of others, the people, or through crime.
  • Add - If you've won additional territory, do two things: kill the old rulers and make 100%  sure the citizens don't hate you. That means: respect their culture, law and taxes. Live there by yourself and start colonies.
  • Church - Figure out a way to become the Pope and govern the Catholic states.

2. How to keep power

The golden rule: don't use mercenaries, period. Never ever. Their only interest is in your money, and their own power. You need loyal soldiers aligned with your own goals.

On the other hand, you do need two things:

  1. A strong army - be able to defend yourself with your own forces.
  2. Proper laws - to keep the state functioning.

If you don't have the army, the laws are worthless. Your best hope would be to build huge walls around your city (fortification).

"Your mother was a hamster" - Frenchman on castle wall, Monty Python

Next to that, there are many people around you. To simplify things, it makes sense to categorize them.

Keep your friends close, and the Church closer

The nobles are hard to satisfy, they want to repress. The people don't want to be repressed - keep them satisfied just enough. Having your own army is expensive but absolutely crucial. Don't use other people's armies - they are not 100% in your control and may do things you don't like.

Whatever you do, just make sure the people don't hate you - they come in great numbers. Your reputation is important, make sure to appear to be a good prince.

3. Characteristics of a good prince

Niccolò offers some practical advise:

  • Start hunting frequently. Keep fit, and understand local geography.
  • Study history, imitate successful people, avoid their failures

On top of that, don't do good just to do good:

Some virtues will ruin you, some vices will bring security and prosperity

For example, don't be generous. If you are, people always want more. You will run out of resources. Then you have to raise taxes. The people will start hating you for that. And we all know people hating you is very bad for your power.

Moreover, don't give too much mercy. Perform just enough cruelty to keep everybody in line. Friendliness is far too easy to abuse.

Prefer being feared over being loved. It is impractical to combine both. If people fear you it is much more likely you stay in control.

Again these are examples of ends justifying the means.

Conclusion

Machiavelli's The Prince reads like a big wake-up call. Getting and keeping power usually requires hard work. Don't let faith decide. Analyze the political and economical playfield. Make deliberate choices upon that information to maximize your chances to stay in power.

The book is filled with examples of both failed and successful adventures of rulers. Some of the stories are intriguing and worth reading more background information on online. Ones I found interesting: three Popes, five blunders of King Louis XII, the foul life of Agathocles.

In the end I found it amazing to read in such a short book so much pragmatism, analyses of wars, conquests and political games. Machiavelli takes you across stories, religion, and virtues, only to slap you into the face when you get carried away: get real, that's the only way to power.