Niccolò Machiavelli

Florentine diplomat and political philosopher, author of The Prince.

The political treatise for which he is most famous, The Prince (Il Principe), was composed around 1513, yet it did not appear in print until 1532, half a decade after his death.^[1] Following his death, Machiavelli's reputation became linked with the kind of unscrupulous behavior he advised in The Prince, where he argued rulers may need to adopt evil policies when political necessity demands it, such as excusing the killing of political enemies.^[2]

Quick Facts

Region

Western philosophy

Era

Renaissance philosophy

Birth name

Niccolò di Bernardo dei Machiavelli

Born

3 May 1469

Birthplace

Florence, Republic of Florence

Died

21 June 1527

School of thought

Classical realism, Republicanism

Main interests

Politics and political philosophy
military theory
history

Facts from the source article.

Life and work

Machiavelli was born in Florence on 3 May 1469, the third child and first son of attorney Bernardo di Niccolò Machiavelli and Bartolomea di Stefano Nelli.^[3] Machiavelli was falsely implicated in a conspiracy, tortured, and released after three weeks.^[4] The priest Paolo da Ronciglione, a well-known instructor of many prominent humanists, provided Machiavelli with lessons in grammar, rhetoric, and Latin starting when Machiavelli was twelve years old.^[5][6] From 1498 until 1512, Machiavelli held the position of secretary to the second chancery of the Florentine Republic, a role that involved producing official government documents.^[7][8]

In the autumn of 1501, Machiavelli wed Marietta Corsini; the couple had seven offspring: Primerana, Bernardo, Lodovico, Guido, Piero, Baccina, and Totto.^[9][10][11] During his diplomatic missions, Machiavelli was sent to the courts of numerous powerful rulers, personally acting as Florence's representative.^[12] Machiavelli passed away on 21 June 1527 at age 58 due to a stomach ailment that had troubled him since 1525, and his remains were interred at Florence's Church of Santa Croce.^[13]

What the cited sources add

The Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy notes that Machiavelli's tenure for the Florentine government lasted from June 19, 1498 to November 7, 1512.^[14] The same source states that Machiavelli published the Art of War in 1520, the only major prose work he would publish during his lifetime.^[14] The Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy adds that Machiavelli's father obtained a complete copy of Livy in 1476 and prepared an index of towns for the printer.^[6][14] The CRB article notes that Machiavelli finished The Prince in 1513.^[15]

References

Wikipedia, "Niccolò Machiavelli" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Niccolò Machiavelli", Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy, 17 June 2023}} and {{Cite web; Strauss, "What is Political Philosophy? And Other Studies", University of Chicago Press, 2004, p. 41; Jurdjevic, "Florentine Political Writings from Petrarch to Machiavelli", University of Pennsylvania Press, May 2019 (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
Wikipedia, "Niccolò Machiavelli" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Niccolo Machiavelli", Encyclopedia Britannica; The Prince, Chapter 18; Rahe, "Machiavelli's Liberal Republican Legacy", Cambridge University Press, 14 November 2005; For example, The Prince chap. 15, and The Discourses Book I, chapter 9; Strauss, "History of Political Philosophy", University of Chicago Press, 2012, p. 297; Mansfield, "Machiavelli's Virtue", University of Chicago Press, 25 February 1998, p. 178; Giorgini, "Five Hundred Years of Italian Scholarship on Machiavelli's Prince", Review of Politics, 2013, p. 625–640; Strau en.wikipedia.org
Wikipedia, "Niccolò Machiavelli" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: ; Robert Black, "Machiavelli" (2013), pg. 3; Black (2022), p. 17 and 22; Black (2022), p. 17 and 22; Nederman, "Machiavelli: A Beginner's Guide", Simon and Schuster, December 2012; Vivanti, Corrado. Niccolò Machiavelli: An Intellectual Biography, pg. 3; Bertelli, "Machiavelli and Soderini", Renaissance Quarterly, 1975, p. 1–16; Landi, "Machiavelli's Gaze: Thinking Social Sciences in the Sixteenth Century", Springer Nature, 2025-06-12; Black (2022) p. 21; Nederman, Cary J. (December 2012). Machiavelli: A Beginner's Guide. Simon and S en.wikipedia.org
Wikipedia, "Niccolò Machiavelli" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Zuckert, "Machiavelli's Politics", University of Chicago Press, 25 April 2017, p. 29; Skinner, "Machiavelli: A Very Short Introduction", Oxford University Press, 2000, p. 36; Robert Black (2022), pg 57-59; Bartlett, "The Renaissance in Italy: A History", Hackett, 15 November 2019, p. 102; Capponi, pg. 200; Robert Black (2022), pg 57-59 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
Wikipedia, "Niccolò Machiavelli" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Landi, pg. 16; "Niccolò Machiavelli (1469–1527)", IEP; Connell, "Society and Individual in Renaissance Florence", University of California Press, 10 September 2002 (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
"Niccolò Machiavelli (1469–1527)", IEP. facts only, no text reused. iep.utm.edu
Wikipedia, "Niccolò Machiavelli" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Machiavelli: A Very Short Introduction, chapter 1, pgs. 3-24; Machiavelli: A Very Short Introduction, chapter 1, pgs. 3-24 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
Wikipedia, "Niccolò Machiavelli" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Ridolfi, "The Life of Niccolò Machiavelli", Routledge, 2013, p. 28; Ridolfi, "The Life of Niccolò Machiavelli", Routledge, 17 June 2013; Campbell, "The Oxford Dictionary of the Renaissance", Oxford University Press, 2003; Black, R. (2010). Machiavelli in the Chancery. The Cambridge Companion to Machiavelli, 31-47.; Viroli, Niccolo's Smile, pg 28, 29 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
Wikipedia, "Niccolò Machiavelli" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: ; "Machiavèlli, Niccolò nell'Enciclopedia Treccani", www.treccani.it (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
"Machiavèlli, Niccolò nell'Enciclopedia Treccani", www.treccani.it. facts only, no text reused. treccani.it
"MACHIAVELLI, Niccolò - Enciclopedia". facts only, no text reused. treccani.it
Wikipedia, "Niccolò Machiavelli" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Bertelli, "Machiavelli and Soderini", Renaissance Quarterly, 1975, p. 1–16; Black, R. (2010). Machiavelli in the Chancery. The Cambridge Companion to Machiavelli, 31-47. (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
Wikipedia, "Niccolò Machiavelli" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Viroli, M. (2002). Niccolò's Smile: A Biography of Machiavelli. Macmillan. pg.256-259; Black, "Machiavelli", Routledge, 2013-11-20; "Even such men as Malatesta and Machiavelli, after spending their lives in estrangement from the Church, sought on their deathbeds her assistance and consolatio; Black, "Machiavelli", Routledge, 2013, p. 283 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
"Niccolò Machiavelli", Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy, 17 June 2023}} and {{Cite web. facts only, no text reused. iep.utm.edu
"CRB -- Land's End". facts only, no text reused. claremontreviewofbooks.com

Each numbered sentence above was checked against the source it cites before publication. Sentences citing Wikipedia adapt text from the English Wikipedia article Niccolò Machiavelli (contributors), used under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is available under the same licence. Other sources were used for facts only; no text or images are copied from them.