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The Prince

Niccolò Machiavelli

  • 156 pages · about 3 hours
  • First published 1532
  • 1,407 editions
  • Free to read
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1 About this book

The Prince is a short political treatise that Niccolò Machiavelli, a former Florentine diplomat, wrote in 1513 and dedicated to Lorenzo de' Medici; it was printed in 1532, five years after his death. In twenty-six brief chapters it advises a new ruler on how to win a state and how to keep it. Machiavelli sorts principalities by the way they are acquired, argues that a prince must rely on his own arms, and asks whether it is better to be generous or sparing, merciful or cruel, loved or feared, and when a ruler should keep his word. His examples come from ancient history and from the Italy of his own day, and he closes with a call to free Italy from foreign powers.

  • Classics
  • Science politique
  • Political science
  • Political ethics
  • History
  • Politics
  • Philosophy
  • Essays

2 What to expect

A short handbook on gaining and keeping power, written by a Florentine diplomat for a new ruler. It describes politics as it is practiced, not as it ought to be, and its frank advice on cruelty, deceit and fear made the author's name a byword for cunning. The chapters are brief and direct, though the many examples from Renaissance Italy and ancient Rome are easier to follow in an edition with notes.

Good for readers who want: political philosophy, a short classic, and an unflinching look at power.

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4 About Niccolò Machiavelli

1469–1527

Niccolò di Bernardo dei Machiavelli (3 May 1469 – 21 June 1527) was a Florentine diplomat, author, philosopher, and historian who lived during the Italian Renaissance. He is best known for his political treatise The Prince (Il Principe), written around 1513 but not published until 1532, five years after his death. He has often been called the father of modern political philosophy and political science.

Bio adapted from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)

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