born May 3, 1469, Florence
died June 21, 1527, Florence
Italian statesman, historian, and political theorist.
He rose to power after the overthrow of Girolamo Savonarola in 1498. Working as a diplomat for 14 years, he came in contact with the most powerful figures in Europe. He was dismissed when the Medici family returned to power in 1512, and during the next year he was arrested and tortured for conspiracy. Though soon released, he was not permitted to return to public office. His famous treatise The Prince (1513, published 1532) is a handbook for rulers; though dedicated to Lorenzo de' Medici , ruler of Florence from 1513, it failed to win Machiavelli his favour. Machiavelli viewed The Prince as an objective description of political reality. Because he viewed human nature as venal, grasping, and thoroughly self-serving, he suggested that ruthless cunning is appropriate to the conduct of government. Though admired for its incisive brilliance, the book also has been widely condemned as cynical and amoral, and "Machiavellian" has come to mean deceitful, unscrupulous, and manipulative. His other works include a set of discourses on Livy (completed 0441; 1518), the comedy The Mandrake (completed 0441; 1518), The Art of War (published 1521), and the Florentine Histories (completed 0441; 1525).
Machiavelli, detail of an oil painting by Santi di Tito; in the Palazzo Vecchio, Florence
Alinari
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