The Prince by Nicolo Machiavelli

We've all heard the term Machiavellian our entire adult lives. The term in the modern context seems to infer the use of unscrupulous or nefarious means to accomplish your goals.

But within the context of which it was written, it was simply good policy towards the establishment of a stable government. It is warlike and belligerent, but so were the times in which Machiavelli lived.

The Prince is a series of recommendations on how to establish and maintain a stable government and rule for the long term. His preoccupation with the importance of a ruler staying in power (as opposed to just a stable government) is perhaps the reason for Machiavelli incurring so much wrath in modern culture.

Machiavelli wrote the work during a time of repose in the back half of his life. He was not in a position of power when writing The Prince. One senses some bitterness in his tone, that he was writing to somehow make sense of the political machinations he experienced during his earlier career.

The Prince is dedicated to Florentine strong-man the Magnificent Lorenzo Di Piero De' Medici. Machiavelli dedicates his writing as free advice; I presume he wanted (needed?) Lorenzo's protection in some manner, or is bucking for a political appointment.

The Prince was much milder in tone and scope than I expected given the way in which his name has been treated in modern times. He recommends a harsher system of rule than would work in modern politics, but one that is undoubtedly suited to the belligerent context of 15th century Italy.