Niccolo Machiavelli, when Commander of Florentine Army--single figure
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Niccolo Machiavelli, as Commander of Florentine Army
Florentine patriot and military-political theorist and author – whose principal written words, ‘The Prince”, was a superb and uncompromising primer on ‘real politic.’
Born and raised in Florence, as a young man Machiavelli rose quickly in the government of the short-lived Florentine Republic. As a key official in the Florentine Chancery, Machiavelli’s focus on the military led him to crafting of the structure and regulations of the 10,000-man Florentine army.
Putting his theories into practice, Machiavelli commanded the army in their successful war with the State of Pisa in 1509. Formative in his development as a military and political theorist was his extensive exposure to the complex and often devious diplomacy and power politics of the Borgia Papacy, especially Cesare Borgia.
In 1510-11, the Florentine role in the War of the Holy League led to the end of the Florentine Republic to the Papal-Spanish army and the restoration of power to the Medici’s. Machiavelli was cast into prison and tortured. He was eventually released due to lack of evidence of any substantive misdeeds.
Machiavelli returned to his modest estate Saint Angelo where he dedicated himself to writing. His brilliant handbook on the use of power in the renaissance ‘The Prince’ was finished in 1513. He followed this with other works: his ‘Art of War’ as well as numerous plays, novels, and historical narratives. A short-lived return to favor and political relevance from 521-26 did not bring the results he hoped; he died of illness in 1527.
Note: His 1515 published work “The Prince’, about the use of power politics, remains relevant today and is still in print 500 years after writing.
