The Prince - Machiavelli (COMMENTED BY NAPOLEON BONAPARTE, Analysis and Summary)

[Commented by Napoleon Bonaparte] I - It is difficult for a people accustomed to living under the rule of a prince, having fallen, by some eventuality, under a republican government, to remain in it. II - A corrupted populace in a republican state is maintained with great difficulty. III - When a monarchical state has begun well, a weak prince can maintain himself in it, but there is no kingdom that can sustain itself when the successor of that prince is as weak as he himself is. Princes are weak when they are not always ready to wage war. IV - The prince who enters a new state must renew it totally. Whoever becomes prince of a state, or province, particularly when he is weakly established in them. It is necessary to establish new governments with new names in the cities, a new authority, and new men, as David did when he became king: he must build new cities, destroy old ones, move inhabitants from one place to another, that is, leave nothing unaltered in that province. Whoever wishes to reign over a new province, neglecting this wise alternative of living as a private citizen, must do this evil if he wishes to maintain himself. V - The mob is daring, but at heart it is weak. I am certain, therefore, that the good or bad disposition of a populace should be taken little account of if you are in a position to contain it and to ensure that you are not offended by any individual, good or ill disposed. The bad dispositions arising from these causes are formidable and require greater remedies to suppress and contain them, while it is easier in other bad dispositions, provided that the populace does not have leaders to whom they can resort. For this reason, a rebellious mob that wishes to avoid such dangers should choose a leader and think about its defense, as the mass of Rome did. When the plebeians do not take such care, what Tito Livio said always happens to them, that is, all together they are audacious, and then each one becomes cowardly and weak when he begins to think about the danger that threatens him. I do not believe it can be said that among those who were born of humble condition and rose to wield a scepter there was at least one who did so by force and weakness. What princes need to do for their elevation is also necessary in new republics, until they become powerful and only need strength to sustain themselves. VI - Whoever rises from a low condition to the highest elevation achieves much more by fraud than by force. VII - The prince who, through his deference to the governed, believes he can temper their boldness, is generally mistaken. It has often been observed that this word is not only completely useless but also harmful, especially when you practice it with insolent men who, out of envy or other reasons, hate you. A prince, therefore, should never allow himself to be degraded from his position nor abandon anything, unless he cannot or believes he cannot retain what compels him to yield. It is almost always the case, when the matter has reached a point where it cannot be yielded willingly, that it is better to let it be taken by force rather than to let it be stolen through it. When you yield out of fear to avoid a war, and frequently you cannot yield it willingly, it is better to let it be taken by force rather than to let it be stolen through it. When you yield out of fear to avoid a war, and frequently you do not avoid it. He to whom, through visible cowardice, you have granted what he wanted, will not stop there. VIII - How dangerous it is for a prince, as well as for a republic, not to punish outrages committed against a nation or an individual. One can perceive how much indignation caused by the impunity of the guilty must occasion harm if one considers what happened to the Romans for not having punished the perfidy of their three ambassadors with respect to the Gauls, for whom Clusium had been sent. The Gauls, having learned that those who deserved only punishment were honored, viewed this conduct as offensive and ignominious to themselves and, indignant and irate, they attacked Rome and took it, with the exception of the Capitol. This misfortune happened to the Romans not only because they had failed in justice, but because their ambassadors, who should have been punished for having acted criminally against the law of nations, were showered with honors for this infamy. Therefore, let princes beware; for if they are gravely offended by someone, individual or state, and do not receive satisfaction, they will exact vengeance in a manner most disastrous for the state. The prince should never underestimate any of his subjects who believe that, by adding their own injury to that which one of them may have done to him, individual or courtier, he has the idea of avenging himself on the prince, even if it means bringing misfortune upon himself. IX - Fortune blinds the minds of men when it does not want them to oppose its own designs. If one considers the course of human affairs, one will recognize that accidents frequently occur against which the heavens did not wish men to be able to protect themselves. Nothing is truer than this conclusion: men, whose lives have been formed by great adversities or by perennial prosperity, deserve neither censure nor praise. When fortune wishes great things to be done, it works competently by choosing a man of great genius to recognize the occasions it will present to him and of sufficient value to take advantage of them. It is true that men can assist fortune; they can direct, not cut, the thread of its operations. However, they must never despair, because not knowing the end to which it leads and walking through controversial and unknown paths, they must always hope and, consequently, sustain themselves with hope, regardless of any critical or uncomfortable circumstance in which they find themselves. X - A government should avoid entrusting positions or administrations of any importance to those whom it has offended. This truth is so evident that it is enough to present here the example that Roman history provides us. When we see how much resentment influences a Roman citizen, in times when Rome was not corrupted, we must foresee how much it can do in a citizen of a state in which corruption has been introduced and in which souls are devoid of all ancient Roman magnanimity. XI - Why the French, at the beginning of combat, were and still are looked upon as more than men and less than women when it is prolonged. To demonstrate my opinion, I must observe that there are some types of armies: the first is that in which order is combined with fury, and in which fury and valor come from the prevailing order: such was the effect that the Romans observed in their armies. Another type of army is one in which there is neither natural fury nor western order; such are the Italian armies of our time, which are for this reason absolutely useless. XII - Of the genius of the French The French genius recognizes the benefits and prejudices of the moment so quickly that it retains little memory of past goods and evils and is little concerned with future good or evil. XIII - A description of the affairs of France The French are, by nature, more fiery than daring or skillful, and when someone resists their fury in the first charge, they become humble and lose so much valor that they become as cowardly as women. They cannot bear narrowness and discomfort, and time loosens them so much in campaign that, if it is possible to make them wait, they disband and then it is easy to defeat them... Therefore, whoever wishes to triumph over them, should contain them in their first assault, entertain them to gain time, and he will defeat them. For this reason, Caesar said that the French—Gauls—were, at first, more than men and at the end, less than women. XIV - Details of Castruccio Castracani, Lord of Lucca In a terrible battle that Castruccio Castracani waged against the Florentines, seeing that it had lasted long enough for them to be as tired as his own troops, he ordered a thousand infantrymen to advance through his ranks and ordered those in the vanguard to open up and make a retrograde movement, some to the right and others to the left, as if withdrawing. Castruccio used to say that men should experience everything and be surprised by nothing; that God loves valiant men, considering that we should punish the weak through them. He ordered the death of a citizen of Lucca who had contributed to his rise, and when it was thrown in his face that he had killed a friend, he replied that they were mistaken, since he had only ordered the death of a new enemy. Bibliography MACHIAVELLI, Niccolò. The Prince; commented by Napoleon Bonaparte; translation by Torrieri Guimarães. São Paulo: Hemus-Livraria Editora Ltda., 1977 •