Nicholas Machiavelli

Niccolò Machiavelli was an important Italian political thinker , writer and Florentine statesman, and an important historical figure who is best remembered for his masterpiece entitled The Prince which was written in 1513 but published after his death in 1532. Machiavelli is considered one of the first early analysts of political power.

Biography of Nicolás Machiavelli

Nicolás Machiavelli was born on May 3, 1469, in Florence , a city located in Italy. His father, Bernardo , belonged to an impoverished branch of an influential Florentine family. As a thinker, he belonged to a school of Florentine intellectuals concerned with political and historical problems. His important writings were published after the year 1512 when he was accused of conspiracy in 1513. The Medici family had returned to power and Machiavelli who had held the post of secretary in the previous government was fired . He was suspected of conspiring against the Medici, for which he was imprisoned , even tortured and exiled. Machiavelli found himself unemployed after years of patriotic service, and spent most of his remaining years in the production of his major works. He achieved some fame as a historian and playwright , but with The Prince he hoped to regain political favor as the book explained how to obtain, maintain, and centralize power. In 1519 he reconciled with the Medicis and was assigned various duties, including writing a history of Florence. When the Medici were removed from their posts in 1527, Machiavelli wanted a new government post, but the Republican government distrusted him because of his previous association with the Medici.

Death

Nicolás Machiavelli died on June 21, 1527. He had been accused of having been involved in a coup against the Medici . After being tortured, he achieves his freedom . Some time later, he was again accused of treason in favor of the Medici for which he was captured again and put under sentence. He died forgotten by the people

Thought of Nicholas Machiavelli

Machiavelli is considered one of the most important political theorists of the Renaissance , since through him he makes his way to political modernity and social restructuring . One of his most important thoughts was that ‘if a person wants to found a state and create its laws, must start by assuming that all men are perverts and who are prepared to show their nature, provided they find the opportunity to do so ” . He was a supporter of the republic because he thought that all communities had two spirits: the people and those who wanted to rule.to town. He always looked for a way to bring the subject of work forward. His ideas have sparked a lot of contradictory ideas, some regarded him as the father of cruelty and tyranny, while others regarded him as a modern politician . In short, his thinking is based on virtue and fortune.

Contributions of Nicholas Machiavelli

Machiavelli inherited from us a series of experiences, rules and patterns of behavior that must be followed in order to govern properly. Among them we can mention the following:

• The best way to govern a country is through the Republic .
• He gave great teachings in the area of public policy .
• He taught what were the main elements to carry out policy analysis.
• He is considered as the creator of modern political thought .

Theory

His theory says that when cities are used to living under a prince , and he leaves, the line is vacant. As the inhabitants are used to following the rules and the laws and when the prince leaves they are unprotected, any other prince could arrive, conquer and retain them . In his theory he affirms that aristocratic states are much easier to conquer than republicans, since the power in the republican is divided between noble families and it is not easy to facilitate power to a foreigner.

Works of Nicholas Machiavelli

Among the main works of Nicolás Machiavelli we can mention the following:

• Speech on the Court of Pisa.
• Portrait of the court of France .
• Discourses on the first decade of Tito Livio .
• Andria, comedy.
• The mandrake, a five-act prose comedy .
• The life of Castruccio Castracani.
• History of Florence.
• The prince, which is considered his most important work in which he seeks to show that the virtues of the prince should not coincide with those of normal men.

Phrases

Among his most recognized phrases we can mention the following:

• It is better to do and regret , than not to do and regret.
• There can be no great difficulties when good will abounds .
• The weapons should be reserved for the last place where and when other means are not sufficient.
• In all human things , when examined closely, it is shown that obstacles cannot be removed without the emergence of others.
• All states well governed and all intelligent princes have been careful not to reduce the nobility to despair, nor the people to discontent.