Character Catalog

A political treatise addressed to Lorenzo II de' Medici, analyzing how to acquire and maintain power. A founding work of modern political philosophy, it separates political effectiveness from traditional morality.

A commentary on ancient Roman history used as a basis for reflection on republics, civic liberty, and institutions. Considered Machiavelli's masterwork on republican thought.

A dialogue on military organization, arguing for an army of citizen-soldiers rather than mercenaries. The only work published during his lifetime, it extends his practical reforms of the Florentine militia.

A five-act comedy and masterpiece of Italian Renaissance theater. It portrays cunning and hypocrisy through a romantic intrigue, revealing Machiavelli's literary talent beyond his political writings.

A history of Florence from its origins to the death of Lorenzo the Magnificent, commissioned by Pope Clement VII. It applies Machiavelli's method of political analysis to the history of his own city.

A short diplomatic treatise written in the course of his duties, illustrating the necessary harshness of power. It foreshadows the theses of The Prince on firmness in handling rebellions.

A prince must know how to make use of both the beast and the man… he must choose among the beasts the lion and the fox: for the lion cannot protect itself from traps, and the fox cannot defend itself from wolves.

Men are so simple and so ready to obey present necessities, that one who deceives will always find those who allow themselves to be deceived.

When evening comes, I return home and go into my study… I step into the ancient courts of men of antiquity and, welcomed by them with affection, I feed on the food that alone is mine.

A prince who does not understand war cannot be respected by his soldiers, nor can he trust them.

The divisions between the nobles and the people were in Rome a cause of liberty; in Florence, they were a cause of servitude.

Seat of the Florentine republican government where Machiavelli worked for fourteen years as chancellor's secretary. From here he directed diplomatic missions and military reform.

Rural estate where Machiavelli was exiled after 1512. It was here, in solitude and disgrace, that he wrote The Prince and the Discourses. The Albergaccio, the village inn, served as his refuge.

Machiavelli traveled here on a diplomatic mission and met Cesare Borgia in 1502–1503. This formative experience shaped his thinking on power and the model of the effective prince.

Machiavelli was buried here in 1527. A cenotaph was erected in the 18th century bearing the inscription "Tanto nomini nullum par elogium" (No praise is worthy of so great a name).

City held by Cesare Borgia where Machiavelli was sent on a mission in 1502. There he closely observed Borgia's methods of governance, which would become the central model for The Prince.