169-523: Niccolò di Bernardo dei Machiavelli (3 May 1469 – 21 June 1527) was a Florentine diplomat, author, philosopher, and historian who lived during the Italian Renaissance . He is best known for his political treatise The Prince ( Il Principe ), written around 1513 but not published until 1532, five years after his death. He has often been called the father of modern political philosophy and political science . For many years he served as
338-439: A humid subtropical climate ( Cfa ), tending to Mediterranean ( Csa ). It has hot summers with moderate or light rainfall and cool, damp winters. As Florence lacks a prevailing wind, summer temperatures are higher than along the coast. Rainfall in summer is convectional , while relief rainfall dominates in the winter. Snow is rare. The highest officially recorded temperature was 42.6 °C (108.7 °F) on 26 July 1983 and
507-724: A secundogeniture of the Habsburg-Lorraine dynasty, who were deposed for the House of Bourbon-Parma in 1801. From 1801 to 1807 Florence was the capital of the Napoleonic client state Kingdom of Etruria . The Bourbon-Parma were deposed in December 1807 when Tuscany was annexed by France . Florence was the prefecture of the French département of Arno from 1808 to the fall of Napoleon in 1814. The Habsburg-Lorraine dynasty
676-438: A "civil way of life". Commentators disagree about how much the two works agree with each other, as Machiavelli frequently refers to leaders of republics as "princes". Machiavelli even sometimes acts as an advisor to tyrants . Other scholars have pointed out the aggrandizing and imperialistic features of Machiavelli's republic. Nevertheless, it became one of the central texts of modern republicanism , and has often been argued to be
845-459: A Roman city, and later, after a long period as a flourishing trading and banking medieval commune , it was the birthplace of the Italian Renaissance . It was politically, economically, and culturally one of the most important cities in Europe and the world from the 14th to 16th centuries. The language spoken in the city during the 14th century came to be accepted as the model for what would become
1014-920: A blow to Venetian finances. Eventually, the Peace of Lodi recognized Venetian and Florentine territorial gains and the legitimacy of the Sforza rule in Milan. The Milan-Florence alliance played a major role in stabilizing the peninsula for the next 40 years. The political crisis of 1458 was the first serious challenge to the Medici rule. The cost of wars had been borne by the great families of Florence, and disproportionately so by Medici's opponents. A number of them (Serragli, Baroncelli, Mancini, Vespucci, Gianni) were practically ruined and had to sell their properties, and those were acquired by Medici's partisans at bargain prices. The opposition used partial relaxation of Medici control of
1183-605: A character to rule, who will inevitably attempt to replace the ruler. Machiavelli has become infamous for such political advice, ensuring that he would be remembered in history through the adjective "Machiavellian". Due to the treatise's controversial analysis on politics, the Catholic Church banned The Prince , putting it on the Index Librorum Prohibitorum . Humanists , including Erasmus ( c. 1466 – 1536), also viewed
1352-578: A citizen than master of his city. Political councils were held in his home; the magistrates he chose were elected; he was king in all but name and legal status…. Some asserted that his tyranny was intolerable." Piero the Gouty was the eldest son of Cosimo. Piero, as his sobriquet the gouty implies, suffered from gout and did not enjoy good health. Lorenzo the Magnificent was Piero's eldest son by his wife Lucrezia Tornabuoni . Piero's reign furthered
1521-468: A city, which he felt was a key to understanding its later development. Moreover, he studied the way people lived and aimed to inform leaders how they should rule and even how they themselves should live. Machiavelli denies the classical opinion that living virtuously always leads to happiness. For example, Machiavelli viewed misery as "one of the vices that enables a prince to rule." Machiavelli stated that "it would be best to be both loved and feared. But since
1690-694: A compromise, and the Pope agreed to militarily aid the Byzantine Emperor. However, upon John VIII's homecoming to Constantinople, the Greeks rejected the compromise, leading to riots throughout what remained of the Byzantine Empire. John VIII was forced to repudiate the agreement with the Roman church to appease the rioters. As a result, no Western aid was forthcoming and the Byzantine Empire's fate
1859-585: A fair sector of Florence's economy. The city's income relies partially on services and commercial and cultural interests, such as annual fairs, theatrical and lyrical productions, art exhibitions, festivals and fashion shows, such as the Calcio Fiorentino . Heavy industry and machinery also take their part in providing an income. In Nuovo Pignone, numerous factories are still present, and small-to medium industrial businesses are dominant. The Florence-Prato-Pistoia industrial districts and areas were known as
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#17327648089932028-503: A few consistently made proposals concerning what was most new in Machiavelli's work. Machiavelli is sometimes seen as the prototype of a modern empirical scientist, building generalizations from experience and historical facts, and emphasizing the uselessness of theorizing with the imagination. He emancipated politics from theology and moral philosophy. He undertook to describe simply what rulers actually did and thus anticipated what
2197-558: A high priority on consistency. Others such as Hans Baron have argued that his ideas must have changed dramatically over time. Some have argued that his conclusions are best understood as a product of his times, experiences and education. Others, such as Leo Strauss and Harvey Mansfield , have argued strongly that there is a strong and deliberate consistency and distinctness, even arguing that this extends to all of Machiavelli's works including his comedies and letters. Commentators such as Leo Strauss have gone so far as to name Machiavelli as
2366-573: A legitimization of political expediency and even malpractice. Machiavelli was a political thinker, renowned for his political handbook The Prince , which is about ruling and exercising power. Commissioned by the Medici, Machiavelli also wrote the Florentine Histories , the history of the city. In 1512, the Medici retook control of Florence with the help of Spanish and Papal troops. They were led by two cousins, Giovanni and Giulio de' Medici , both of whom would later become Popes of
2535-600: A location in the Piazza del Duomo. In October 2021, Florence was shortlisted for the European Commission 's 2022 European Capital of Smart Tourism award along with Bordeaux , Copenhagen , Dublin , Ljubljana , Palma de Mallorca and Valencia . Food and wine have long been an important staple of the economy. The Chianti region is just south of the city, and its Sangiovese grapes figure prominently not only in its Chianti Classico wines but also in many of
2704-492: A man control more of his future, in the place of allowing fortune to do so. Najemy (1993) has argued that this same approach can be found in Machiavelli's approach to love and desire, as seen in his comedies and correspondence. Najemy shows how Machiavelli's friend Vettori argued against Machiavelli and cited a more traditional understanding of fortune. On the other hand, humanism in Machiavelli's time meant that classical pre-Christian ideas about virtue and prudence, including
2873-578: A manner that it produced a great and universal joy among the citizens." On the death of Pope Leo X in 1521, Adams writes there was a "ready inclination in all of the principal citizens [of Florence], and a universal desire among the people, to maintain the state in the hands of the Cardinal de' Medici; and all this felicity arose from his good government, which since the death of the Duke Lorenzo, had been universally agreeable." When Cardinal Giulio
3042-499: A more comprehensive work than The Prince . Major commentary on Machiavelli's work has focused on two issues: how unified and philosophical his work is and how innovative or traditional it is. There is some disagreement concerning how best to describe the unifying themes, if there are any, that can be found in Machiavelli's works, especially in the two major political works, The Prince and Discourses . Some commentators have described him as inconsistent, and perhaps as not even putting
3211-483: A number of smaller cities submitted to Gian Galeazzo, while Lucca withdrew from the anti-Visconti league, with Bologna remaining the only major ally. In November 1400 a conspiracy involving both exiles and internal opponents was uncovered. Two Ricci were implicated as leaders of a plot to eliminate the regime's inner circle and open the gates to the Milanese. Confessions indicated that the plan had wide support among
3380-463: A peace. Lorenzo died in 1492 and was succeeded by his son Piero. Piero ruled Florence for a mere two years. Charles VIII of France invaded Italy in September 1494. He demanded passage through Florence to Naples, where he intended to secure the throne for himself. Piero met Charles at the fringes of Florence to try and negotiate. Piero capitulated to all Charles' demands, and upon arriving back in
3549-493: A programme of spraying church steps with water to prevent tourists from using such areas as picnic spots. While he values the benefits of tourism, he claims that there has been "an increase among those who sit down on church steps, eat their food and leave rubbish strewn on them", he explained. To boost the sale of traditional foods, the mayor had introduced legislation (enacted in 2016) that requires restaurants to use typical Tuscan products and rejected McDonald's application to open
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#17327648089933718-443: A result. In 2015, Mayor Dario Nardella expressed concern over visitors who arrive on buses, stay only a few hours, spend little money but contribute significantly to overcrowding. "No museum visit, just a photo from the square, the bus back and then on to Venice ... We don't want tourists like that", he said. Some tourists are less than respectful of the city's cultural heritage, according to Nardella. In June 2017, he instituted
3887-562: A sect was that it makes men weak and inactive, delivering politics into the hands of cruel and wicked men without a fight. Florence Florence ( / ˈ f l ɒr ən s / FLORR -ənss ; Italian : Firenze [fiˈrɛntse] ) is the capital city of the Italian region of Tuscany . It is also the most populated city in Tuscany, with 364,073 inhabitants in 2024, and 990,527 in its metropolitan area . Florence
4056-637: A senior official in the Florentine Republic with responsibilities in diplomatic and military affairs. He wrote comedies, carnival songs, and poetry. His personal correspondence is also important to historians and scholars of Italian correspondence. He worked as secretary to the second chancery of the Republic of Florence from 1498 to 1512, when the Medici were out of power. After his death Machiavelli's name came to evoke unscrupulous acts of
4225-517: A series of lessons on how a republic should be started and structured. It is a larger work than The Prince , and while it more openly explains the advantages of republics, it also contains many similar themes from his other works. For example, Machiavelli has noted that to save a republic from corruption, it is necessary to return it to a "kingly state" using violent means. He excuses Romulus for murdering his brother Remus and co-ruler Titus Tatius to gain absolute power for himself in that he established
4394-526: A sign of major innovation in Machiavelli, because classical materialists did not share the Socratic regard for political life, while Machiavelli clearly did. Thucydides Some scholars note the similarity between Machiavelli and the Greek historian Thucydides , since both emphasized power politics . Strauss argued that Machiavelli may indeed have been influenced by pre-Socratic philosophers , but he felt it
4563-573: A stomach ailment at the age of 58 after receiving his last rites . He was buried at the Church of Santa Croce in Florence. In 1789 George Nassau Clavering , and Pietro Leopoldo, Grand Duke of Tuscany , initiated the construction of a monument on Machiavelli's tomb. It was sculpted by Innocenzo Spinazzi , with an epitaph by Doctor Ferroni inscribed on it. Machiavelli's best-known book Il Principe contains several maxims concerning politics. Instead of
4732-503: A student of Socrates more known as a historian, rhetorician and soldier, was a major source of Socratic ideas for Machiavelli, sometimes not in line with Aristotle. While interest in Plato was increasing in Florence during Machiavelli's lifetime, Machiavelli does not show particular interest in him, but was indirectly influenced by his readings of authors such as Polybius , Plutarch and Cicero . The major difference between Machiavelli and
4901-508: A valuable ally among the other Italian states. In August 1466, the conspirators acted. They received support from the Duke of Ferrara , who marched troops into the Florentine countryside with the intent of deposing Piero. The coup failed. The Florentines were not willing to support it, and soon after their arrival, Ferrara's troops left the city. The conspirators were exiled for life. While
5070-431: A vast patronage network along with his alliance to the new immigrants, the gente nuova (new people). The fact that the Medici were bankers to the pope also contributed to their ascendancy. Cosimo was succeeded by his son Piero , who was, soon after, succeeded by Cosimo's grandson, Lorenzo in 1469. Lorenzo was a great patron of the arts, commissioning works by Michelangelo , Leonardo da Vinci and Botticelli . Lorenzo
5239-400: A well-known correspondence with more politically connected friends, attempting to become involved once again in political life. In a letter to Francesco Vettori , he described his experience: When evening comes, I go back home, and go to my study. On the threshold, I take off my work clothes, covered in mud and filth, and I put on the clothes an ambassador would wear. Decently dressed, I enter
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5408-407: A wide range of influences is in itself not controversial. Their relative importance is however a subject of ongoing discussion. It is possible to summarize some of the main influences emphasized by different commentators. The Mirror of Princes genre Gilbert (1938) summarized the similarities between The Prince and the genre it obviously imitates, the so-called " Mirror of Princes " style. This
5577-425: A year later. He was excommunicated by Pope Alexander VI in late 1497. In the same year, Florence embarked on a war with Pisa , which had been de facto independent since Charles VIII 's invasion three years before. The endeavour failed miserably, and this led to food shortages. That, in turn, led to a few isolated cases of the plague. The people blamed Savonarola for their woes, and he was tortured and executed in
5746-459: Is a major production and commercial centre in Italy, where the Florentine industrial complexes in the suburbs produce all sorts of goods, from furniture, rubber goods, chemicals, and food. Traditional and local products, such as antiques, handicrafts, glassware, leatherwork, art reproductions, jewellery, souvenirs, elaborate metal and iron-work, shoes, accessories and high fashion clothes also occupy
5915-548: Is often stated (the debt was just £13,000) but because of a Europe-wide economic recession. While the banks perished, Florentine literature flourished, and Florence was home to some of the greatest writers in Italian history: Dante , Petrarch , and Boccaccio . They were Europe's first vernacular writers, choosing the Tuscan dialect of Italian (which, as a result, evolved into the standard Italian language) over Latin . Florence
6084-469: Is particularly strong, with world-renowned museums such as the Uffizi selling over 1.93 million tickets in 2014. The city's convention centre facilities were restructured during the 1990s and host exhibitions, conferences, meetings, social forums, concerts and other events. In 2016, Florence had 20,588 hotel rooms in 570 facilities. International visitors use 75% of the rooms; some 18% of those were from
6253-423: Is simply a "realist" or "pragmatist" who accurately states that moral values, in reality, do not greatly affect the decisions that political leaders make. German philosopher Ernst Cassirer (1946) held that Machiavelli simply adopts the stance of a political scientist – a Galileo of politics – in distinguishing between the "facts" of political life and the "values" of moral judgment. On
6422-446: Is the most significant industry in central Florence. From April to October, tourists outnumber the local population. Tickets to the Uffizi and Accademia galleries are regularly sold out and large groups regularly fill the basilicas of Santa Croce and Santa Maria Novella , both of which charge for entry. Tickets for The Uffizi and Accademia can be purchased online prior to visiting. In 2010, readers of Travel + Leisure magazine ranked
6591-515: The Realpolitik of figures such as Otto von Bismarck . Machiavelli was born in Florence , Italy, the third child and first son of attorney Bernardo di Niccolò Machiavelli and his wife, Bartolomea di Stefano Nelli, on 3 May 1469. The Machiavelli family is believed to be descended from the old marquesses of Tuscany and to have produced thirteen Florentine Gonfalonieres of Justice , one of
6760-535: The Florentine Republic , was a medieval and early modern state that was centered on the Italian city of Florence in Tuscany, Italy . The republic originated in 1115, when the Florentine people rebelled against the Margraviate of Tuscany upon the death of Matilda of Tuscany , who controlled vast territories that included Florence. The Florentines formed a commune in her successors' place. The republic
6929-615: The Historic Centre of Florence a World Heritage Site in 1982. The city is noted for its culture, Renaissance art and architecture and monuments. The city also contains numerous museums and art galleries, such as the Uffizi Gallery and the Palazzo Pitti , and still exerts an influence in the fields of art, culture and politics. Due to Florence's artistic and architectural heritage, Forbes ranked it as one of
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7098-731: The Italian Social Republic . Hitler declared it an open city on 3 July 1944 as troops of the British 8th Army closed in. Except for the Ponte Vecchio , in early August, the retreating Germans decided to demolish all the bridges along the Arno linking the district of Oltrarno to the rest of the city, making it difficult for troops of the 8th Army to cross. Florence was liberated by New Zealand , South African and British troops on 4 August 1944 alongside partisans from
7267-510: The Italian language . Thanks especially to the works of the Tuscans Dante , Petrarch and Boccaccio , the Florentine dialect, above all the local dialects, was adopted as the basis for a national literary language. Starting from the late Middle Ages , Florentine money—in the form of the gold florin —financed the development of industry all over Europe, from Britain to Bruges , to Lyon and Hungary . Florentine bankers financed
7436-473: The Marquisate of Tuscany . After Margravine Matilda of Tuscany died in 1115, the city did not submit readily to her successor, Rabodo (r. 1116–1119), who was killed in a dispute with the city. It is not known precisely when Florence formed its own republican/oligarchical government independent of the marquisate, although the death of Rabodo in 1119 should be a turning point. The first official mention of
7605-536: The Middle Ages . The war with Avignon papacy strained the regime. In 1378 discontented wool workers revolted. The Ciompi revolt , as it is known, established a revolutionary commune. In 1382 the wealthier classes crushed the seeds of rebellion. The famous Medici bank was established by Giovanni di Bicci de' Medici in October 1397. The bank continued to exist (albeit in an extremely diminished form) until
7774-661: The Piazza della Signoria by being burned at the stake by Florentine authorities, in May 1498. In 1502, the Florentines chose Piero Soderini as their first ruler for life. Soderini succeeded where Savonarola had failed, when the Secretary of War, Niccolò Machiavelli , recaptured Pisa in 1509. It was at this time that Machiavelli introduced a standing army in Florence, replacing the traditional use of hired mercenaries. Soderini
7943-590: The Republic of Genoa . Florence obliged, but Milan disregarded its own treaty and occupied a Florentine border town. The conservative government wanted war, while the people bemoaned such a stance as they would be subject to enormous tax increases. The republic went to war with Milan, and won, upon the Republic of Venice 's entry on their side. The war was concluded in 1427, and the Visconti of Milan were forced to sign an unfavourable treaty. The debt incurred during
8112-661: The Tuscan Committee of National Liberation (CTLN). The Allied soldiers who died driving the Germans from Tuscany are buried in cemeteries outside the city (Americans about nine kilometres or 5 + 1 ⁄ 2 miles south of the city, British and Commonwealth soldiers a few kilometres east of the centre on the right bank of the Arno). At the end of World War II in May 1945, the US Army's Information and Educational Branch
8281-689: The Wars in Lombardy . This series of conflicts between the Venetian Republic and the Duchy of Milan for hegemony in Northern Italy lasted from 1423 to 1454 and involved a number of Italian states, that occasionally switched sides according to their changing interests. Filippo Maria Visconti of Milan invaded Florence twice in the 1430s, and again in 1440, but his army was finally defeated in
8450-453: The battle of Anghiari . The Milanese invasions were largely instigated by the exiled Albizzi family. Death of Filippo Maria in 1447 led to a major change in the alliances. In 1450 Cosimo's current ally Francesco Sforza established himself as the Duke of Milan . Florentine trade interests made her support Sforza's Milan in the war against Venice, while the fall of Constantinople in 1453 dealt
8619-444: The urban area of Florence. The Metropolitan Area of Florence, Prato and Pistoia , constituted in 2000 over an area of roughly 4,800 square kilometres (1,850 sq mi), is home to 1.5 million people. Within Florence proper, 46.8% of the population was male in 2007 and 53.2% were female. Minors (children aged 18 and less) totalled 14.10% of the population compared to pensioners, who numbered 25.95 percent. This compares with
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#17327648089938788-459: The "deliberate purpose of dealing with a new ruler who will need to establish himself in defiance of custom". Normally, these types of works were addressed only to hereditary princes. (Xenophon is also an exception in this regard.) Classical republicanism Commentators such as Quentin Skinner and J.G.A. Pocock , in the so-called "Cambridge School" of interpretation, have asserted that some of
8957-742: The 'Third Italy' in the 1990s, due to the exports of high-quality goods and automobile (especially the Vespa ) and the prosperity and productivity of the Florentine entrepreneurs. Some of these industries even rivalled the traditional industrial districts in Emilia-Romagna and Veneto due to high profits and productivity. In the fourth quarter of 2015, manufacturing increased by 2.4% and exports increased by 7.2%. Leading sectors included mechanical engineering, fashion, pharmaceutics, food and wine. During 2015, permanent employment contracts increased by 48.8 percent, boosted by nationwide tax break. Tourism
9126-522: The 12th century through extensive trade with foreign countries. This, in turn, provided a platform for the demographic growth of the city, which mirrored the rate of construction of churches and palazzi . This prosperity was shattered when Emperor Frederick I Barbarossa invaded the Italian peninsula in 1185. As a result, the margraves of Tuscany reacquired Florence and its townlands. The Florentines reasserted their independence when Emperor Henry VI died in 1197. Florence's population continued to grow into
9295-461: The 13th century, reaching 30,000 inhabitants. As has been said, the extra inhabitants supported the city's trade and vice versa. Several new bridges and churches were built, most prominently the cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore , begun in 1294. The buildings from this era serve as Florence's best examples of Gothic Architecture . Politically, Florence was barely able to maintain peace between its competing factions. The precarious peace that existed at
9464-481: The 6th century and Florence was in turn conquered by Charlemagne in 774 becoming part of the March of Tuscany centred on Lucca . The population began to grow again and commerce prospered. Margrave Hugo chose Florence as his residency instead of Lucca around 1000 AD. The Golden Age of Florentine art began around this time. In 1100, Florence was a " commune ", meaning a city-state. The city's primary resource
9633-669: The Black chiefs, consented to set fire to the dwellings of his own kinsmen in Orto-san-Michele; the flames, assisted by faction, spread rapidly over the richest and most crowded part of Florence: shops, warehouses, towers, private dwellings and palaces, from the old to the new market-place, from Vacchereccia to Porta Santa Maria and the Ponte Vecchio, all was one broad sheet of fire: more than nineteen hundred houses were consumed; plunder and devastation revelled unchecked amongst
9802-638: The Bonsignori family of Siena, one of the leading banking families of Europe, went bankrupt, and the city of Siena lost its status as the most prominent banking center of Europe to Florence. In 1304, the war between the Ghibellines and the Guelphs led to a great fire that destroyed much of the city. Napier gives the following account: Battles first began between the Cerchi and Giugni at their houses in
9971-597: The Bonsignori family, several new banking families sprang up in Florence: the Bardis , Peruzzis and the Acciaioli . The friction between the Guelphs and the Ghibellines did not cease, authority still passed between the two frequently. Florence's reign as the foremost banking city of Europe did not last long; the aforesaid families were bankrupt in 1340, not because of Edward III of England 's refusal to pay his debts, as
10140-784: The Byzantine Eastern Orthodox Church with Roman Catholicism . Pope Eugenius IV convened it in reply to a cry for assistance from the Emperor of the Eastern Roman Empire (also known as the Byzantine Empire ) John VIII Palaiologos . John VIII's empire was slowly being devoured by the Ottoman Turks. The council was a huge boost to Florence's international prestige. The council deliberated until July 1439. Both parties had reached
10309-477: The Catholic Church, (Leo X and Clement VII, respectively). Both were generous patrons of the arts, commissioning works like Michelangelo 's Laurentian Library and Medici Chapel in Florence, to name just two. Their reigns coincided with political upheaval in Italy, and thus in 1527, Florentines drove out the Medici for a second time and re-established a theocratic republic on 16 May 1527, (Jesus Christ
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#173276480899310478-473: The Church had come to accept, allowed practical decisions to be guided too much by imaginary ideals and encouraged people to lazily leave events up to providence or, as he would put it, chance, luck or fortune. While Christianity sees modesty as a virtue and pride as sinful, Machiavelli took a more classical position, seeing ambition, spiritedness, and the pursuit of glory as good and natural things, and part of
10647-539: The English kings during the Hundred Years' War . They similarly financed the papacy, including the construction of their provisional capital of Avignon and, after their return to Rome, the reconstruction and Renaissance embellishment of Rome. Florence was home to the Medici, one of European history's most important noble families. Lorenzo de' Medici was considered a political and cultural mastermind of Italy in
10816-511: The Florentine Republic on diplomatic visits to France, Germany, and elsewhere in Italy. Despairing of the opportunity to remain directly involved in political matters, after a time he began to participate in intellectual groups in Florence and wrote several plays that (unlike his works on political theory) were both popular and widely known in his lifetime. Politics remained his main passion, and to satisfy this interest, he maintained
10985-619: The Florentine republic was in 1138, when several cities around Tuscany formed a league against the then-margrave of Tuscany, Duke Henry X of Bavaria . The country was nominally part of the Holy Roman Empire . According to a study carried out by Enrico Faini of the University of Florence , there were about fifteen old aristocratic families who moved to Florence between 1000 and 1100: Amidei ; Ardinghi; Brunelleschi ; Buondelmonti; Caponsacchi; Donati ; Fifanti; Gherardini of Montagliari ; Guidi; Nerli; Porcelli; Sacchetti ; Scolari; Uberti; and Visdomini. The newly independent Florence prospered in
11154-559: The Great and Theseus (he treated pagan and Christian patriarchs in the same way) as the greatest of new princes, the glorious and brutal founders of the most novel innovations in politics, and men whom Machiavelli assures us have always used a large amount of armed force and murder against their own people. He estimated that these sects last from 1,666 to 3,000 years each time, which, as pointed out by Leo Strauss, would mean that Christianity became due to start finishing about 150 years after Machiavelli. Machiavelli's concern with Christianity as
11323-434: The Italian average of 18.06 percent (minors) and 19.94 percent (pensioners). The average age of Florence resident is 49 compared to the Italian average of 42. In the five years between 2002 and 2007, the population of Florence grew by 3.22 percent, while Italy as a whole grew by 3.56 percent. The birth rate of Florence is 7.66 births per 1,000 inhabitants compared to the Italian average of 9.45 births. As of 2009 , 87.46% of
11492-411: The Medici. Savonarola's ulterior goal, however, was to transform Florence into a "city of God". Florentines stopped wearing garish colours, and many women took oaths to become nuns. Savonarola became most famous for his " Bonfire of the Vanities ", where he ordered all "vanities" to be gathered and burned. These included wigs, perfume, paintings, and ancient pagan manuscripts. Savonarola's rule collapsed
11661-456: The Milanese during the first war. The second war started in March 1397. Milanese troops devastated the Florentine contado , but were checked in August of that year. The war expenses exceeded one million florins and necessitated tax raises and forced loans. A peace agreement in May 1398 was brokered by Venice, but left the struggle unresolved. Over the next two years Florentine control of Tuscany and Umbria collapsed. Pisa and Siena as well as
11830-400: The Republic into a hereditary monarchy . The second duke, Cosimo I , established a strong Florentine navy and expanded his territory, conquering Siena . In 1569, the pope declared Cosimo the first grand duke of Tuscany . The Medici ruled the Grand Duchy of Tuscany until 1737. The city of Florence was established in 59 BC by Julius Caesar . Since 846 AD, the city had been part of
11999-418: The Republic of Florence for 200,000 florins. Since the Pisans did not intend to voluntarily submit to their long-time rivals, the army under Maso degli Albizzi took Pisa on 9 October 1406 after a long siege, that was accompanied by numerous atrocities. The state authorities had been approached by the Duchy of Milan in 1422, with a treaty, that prohibited Florence's interference with Milan's impending war with
12168-413: The Republic of Florence was the first European gold coin struck in sufficient quantities to play a significant commercial role since the 7th century. As many Florentine banks were international companies with branches across Europe, the florin quickly became the dominant trade coin of Western Europe for large scale transactions, replacing silver bars in multiples of the mark . In fact, with the collapse of
12337-705: The Socratics, according to Strauss, is Machiavelli's materialism, and therefore his rejection of both a teleological view of nature and of the view that philosophy is higher than politics. With their teleological understanding of things, Socratics argued that by nature, everything that acts, acts towards some end, as if nature desired them, but Machiavelli claimed that such things happen by blind chance or human action. Classical materialism Strauss argued that Machiavelli may have seen himself as influenced by some ideas from classical materialists such as Democritus , Epicurus and Lucretius . Strauss however sees this also as
12506-537: The U.S. In 2014, the city had 8.5 million overnight stays. A Euromonitor report indicates that in 2015 the city ranked as the world's 36th most visited in the world, with over 4.95 million arrivals for the year. Tourism brings revenue to Florence, but also creates certain problems. The Ponte Vecchio, The San Lorenzo Market and Santa Maria Novella are plagued by pickpockets. The province of Florence receives roughly 13 million visitors per year and in peak seasons, popular locations may become overcrowded as
12675-663: The Unfortunate . Lorenzo's brother Giuliano was killed before his own eyes in the Pazzi conspiracy of 1478. This plot was instigated by the Pazzi family. The coup was unsuccessful, and the conspirators were executed in a very violent manner. The scheme was supported by the Archbishop of Pisa, Francesco Salviati , who was also executed in his ceremonial robes. News of this sacrilege reached Pope Sixtus IV (who had also supported
12844-565: The Via del Garbo; they fought day and night, and with the aid of the Cavalcanti and Antellesi the former subdued all that quarter: a thousand rural adherents strengthened their bands, and that day might have seen the Neri's destruction if an unforeseen disaster had not turned the scale. A certain dissolute priest, called Neri Abati, prior of San Piero Scheraggio, false to his family and in concert with
13013-401: The advances of the Guelphs, for example the demolition of hundreds of towers, homes, and palaces. The fragility of their rule caused the Ghibellines to seek out an arbitrator in the form of Pope Clement IV , who openly favoured the Guelphs, and restored them to power. The Florentine economy reached a zenith in the latter half of the 13th century, and its success was reflected by the building of
13182-421: The advent of new technologies being invented in both good and bad governments. Strauss argued that the unavoidable nature of such arms races, which existed before modern times and led to the collapse of peaceful civilizations, show that classical-minded men "had to admit in other words that in an important respect the good city has to take its bearings by the practice of bad cities or that the bad impose their law on
13351-431: The advice – tyrants or good rulers. That Machiavelli strove for realism is not doubted, but for four centuries scholars have debated how best to describe his morality. The Prince made the word Machiavellian a byword for deceit, despotism, and political manipulation. Leo Strauss declared himself inclined toward the traditional view that Machiavelli was self-consciously a "teacher of evil", since he counsels
13520-495: The always fractious political divisions of Florence when he had called up huge debts owed to the Medici Bank. These debts were owed primarily by a Florentine nobleman, Luca Pitti . Lucca called for an armed insurrection against Piero, but a co-conspirator rebutted this. Duke Francesco Sforza of Milan died in 1466, and his son Galeazzo Maria Sforza became the new Milanese duke. With the death of Francesco Sforza, Florence lost
13689-459: The ancient courts of rulers who have long since died. There, I am warmly welcomed, and I feed on the only food I find nourishing and was born to savour. I am not ashamed to talk to them and ask them to explain their actions and they, out of kindness, answer me. Four hours go by without my feeling any anxiety. I forget every worry. I am no longer afraid of poverty or frightened of death. I live entirely through them. Machiavelli died on 21 June 1527 from
13858-547: The beginning of the century was destroyed in 1216 when two factions, known as the Guelphs and the Ghibellines , began to war. The Ghibellines were supporters of the noble rulers of Florence, whereas the Guelphs were populists . The Ghibellines, who had ruled the city under Frederick of Antioch since 1244, were deposed in 1250 by the Guelphs. The Guelphs led Florence to prosper further. Their primarily mercantile orientation soon became evident in one of their earliest achievements:
14027-419: The book negatively. As a treatise, its primary intellectual contribution to the history of political thought is the fundamental break between political realism and political idealism , due to it being a manual on acquiring and keeping political power. In contrast with Plato and Aristotle , Machiavelli insisted that an imaginary ideal society is not a model by which a prince should orient himself. Concerning
14196-419: The centre, damaging many art treasures. Around the city there are tiny placards on the walls noting where the flood waters reached at their highest point. Florence lies in a basin formed by the hills of Careggi , Fiesole , Settignano , Arcetri , Poggio Imperiale and Bellosguardo (Florence). The Arno river , three other minor rivers (Mugnone, Ema and Greve) and some streams flow through it. Florence has
14365-558: The citizens of the state of Florence were in secret very discontented, because the Duke Lorenzo, desiring to reduce the government to the form of a principality, appeared to disdain to consult any longer with the magistrates and his fellow-citizens as he used to do, and gave audiences very seldom, and with much impatience; he attended less to the business of the city, and caused all public affairs to be managed by Messer Goro da Pistoia, his secretary." In 1519, Lorenzo died from syphilis, shortly before his wife gave birth to Catherine de' Medici ,
14534-429: The city as their third favourite tourist destination. In 2015, Condé Nast Travel readers voted Florence as the best city in Europe. Studies by Euromonitor International have concluded that cultural and history-oriented tourism is generating significantly increased spending throughout Europe. Florence is believed to have the greatest concentration of art (in proportion to its size) in the world. Thus, cultural tourism
14703-687: The city for a year. In 1513, the Medici accused him of conspiracy against them and had him imprisoned. Despite being subjected to torture (" with the rope ", in which the prisoner is hanged from his bound wrists from the back, forcing the arms to bear the body's weight and dislocating the shoulders), he denied involvement and was released after three weeks. Machiavelli then retired to his farm estate at Sant'Andrea in Percussina , near San Casciano in Val di Pesa , where he devoted himself to studying and writing political treatises. During this period, he represented
14872-518: The city in November, he was branded as a traitor. He was forced to flee the republic with his family. After the fall of the Medici, Girolamo Savonarola ruled the state. Savonarola was a priest from Ferrara . He came to Florence in the 1480s. By proclaiming predictions and through vigorous preaching, he won the people to his cause. Savonarola's new government ushered in democratic reforms. It allowed many exiles back into Florence, who were banished by
15041-481: The conspiracy against the Medicis). Sixtus IV was "outraged" and excommunicated everyone in Florence. Sixtus sent a papal delegation to Florence to arrest Lorenzo. The people of Florence were obviously enraged by the Pope's actions, and the local clergy too. The populace refused to resign Lorenzo to the papal delegation. A war followed, which lasted for two years until Lorenzo tactfully went about diplomatically securing
15210-614: The continent. During the Republican period, Florence was also the birthplace of the Renaissance , which is considered a fervent period of European cultural, artistic, political and economic "rebirth". The republic had a checkered history of coups and countercoups against various factions. The Medici faction gained governance of the city in 1434 under Cosimo de' Medici . The Medici kept control of Florence until 1494. Giovanni de' Medici, who later became Pope Leo X , reconquered
15379-518: The death of Gian Gastone de' Medici in 1737. The Kingdom of Italy , which was established in 1861, moved its capital from Turin to Florence in 1865, although the capital was moved to Rome in 1871. Florence was established by the Romans in 59 BC as a colony for veteran soldiers and was built in the style of an army camp . Situated along the Via Cassia , the main route between Rome and
15548-404: The deliberate originator of modernity itself. Others have argued that Machiavelli is only a particularly interesting example of trends which were happening around him. In any case, Machiavelli presented himself at various times as someone reminding Italians of the old virtues of the Romans and Greeks, and other times as someone promoting a completely new approach to politics. That Machiavelli had
15717-519: The differences and similarities in Machiavelli's advice to ruthless and tyrannical princes in The Prince and his more republican exhortations in Discourses on Livy , a few commentators assert that The Prince , although written as advice for a monarchical prince, contains arguments for the superiority of republican regimes, similar to those found in the Discourses . In the 18th century, the work
15886-463: The eclipse of Florence's formerly powerful rival Pisa . The growing power of the merchant elite culminated in an anti-aristocratic uprising, led by Giano della Bella , resulting in the Ordinances of Justice which entrenched the power of the elite guilds until the end of the Republic. At the height of demographic expansion around 1325, the urban population may have been as great as 120,000, and
16055-677: The elites, including a Medici and several of the Alberti . The republic bankrolled the emperor-elect Rupert . However, he was defeated by the Milanese in the fall of 1401. Visconti then turned to Bologna. On 26 June 1402, combined Bolognese-Florentine forces were routed at Casalecchio , near Bologna, which was taken on the 30th. The road to Tuscany was open. However, Florence was saved after an outbreak of plague had spread from Tuscany to Emilia and Lombardy: Gian Galeazzo died from it on 3 September 1402. The Visconti domains were divided between three heirs. Gabriele Maria Visconti sold Pisa to
16224-613: The exhortations in his other works of political philosophy. While less well known than The Prince , the Discourses on Livy (composed c. 1517 ) has been said to have paved the way for modern republicanism . His works were a major influence on Enlightenment authors who revived interest in classical republicanism , such as Jean-Jacques Rousseau and James Harrington . Machiavelli's political realism has continued to influence generations of academics and politicians, including Hannah Arendt , and his approach has been compared to
16393-508: The famed Palazzo della Signoria , designed by Arnolfo di Cambio . The Florentine townlands were divided into administrative districts in 1292. In 1293, the Ordinances of Justice were enacted, which effectively became the constitution of the republic of Florence throughout the Italian Renaissance. The city's numerous luxurious palazzi were becoming surrounded by townhouses built by the ever prospering merchant class. In 1298,
16562-400: The flames, whole races were reduced in one moment to beggary, and vast magazines of the richest merchandise were destroyed. The Cavalcanti, one of the most opulent families in Florence, beheld their whole property consumed, and lost all courage; they made no attempt to save it, and, after almost gaining possession of the city, were finally overcome by the opposite faction. The golden florin of
16731-1054: The founding of new modes and orders. His advice to princes was therefore certainly not limited to discussing how to maintain a state. It has been argued that Machiavelli's promotion of innovation led directly to the argument for progress as an aim of politics and civilization . But while a belief that humanity can control its own future, control nature, and "progress" has been long-lasting, Machiavelli's followers, starting with his own friend Guicciardini , have tended to prefer peaceful progress through economic development, and not warlike progress. As Harvey Mansfield (1995 , p. 74) wrote: "In attempting other, more regular and scientific modes of overcoming fortune, Machiavelli's successors formalized and emasculated his notion of virtue." Machiavelli however, along with some of his classical predecessors, saw ambition and spiritedness, and therefore war, as inevitable and part of human nature . Strauss concludes his 1958 book Thoughts on Machiavelli by proposing that this promotion of progress leads directly to
16900-443: The future Queen of France. Following the death of Lorenzo II, Cardinal Giulio de' Medici governed Florence until 1523, when he was elected Pope Clement VII. U.S. President John Adams later characterized his administration of Florence as "very successful and frugal." Adams chronicles Cardinal Giulio as having "reduced the business of the magistrates, elections, customs of office, and the mode of expenditure of public money, in such
17069-458: The good". Strauss (1958 , pp. 298–299) Machiavelli shows repeatedly that he saw religion as man-made, and that the value of religion lies in its contribution to social order and the rules of morality must be dispensed with if security requires it. In The Prince , the Discourses and in the Life of Castruccio Castracani he describes "prophets", as he calls them, like Moses , Romulus , Cyrus
17238-599: The head of the Medici Bank. He played a prominent role in the government of Florence until his exile in 1433, after a disastrous war with Tuscany's neighbour, the Republic of Lucca . Cosimo's exile in Venice lasted for less than a year, when the people of Florence overturned Cosimo's exile in a democratic vote. Cosimo returned to the acclaim of his people and the banishment of the Albizzi family, who had exiled him. The Renaissance began during Cosimo's de facto rule of Florence,
17407-479: The internal problems were fixed, Venice took the opportunity to invade Florentine territory in 1467. Piero appointed Federigo da Montefeltro , Lord of Urbino , to command his mercenaries. An inconclusive battle ensued, with the Venetians forces retreating. In the winter of 1469 Piero died. Lorenzo succeeded his father, Piero. Lorenzo, as heir, was accordingly groomed by his father to rule over Florence. Lorenzo
17576-623: The introduction of a new coin, the florin , in 1252. It was widely used beyond Florence's borders due to its reliable, fixed gold content and soon became one of the common currencies of Europe and the Near East . The same year saw the creation of the Palazzo del Popolo . The Guelphs lost the reins of power after Florence suffered a catastrophic defeat at the Battle of Montaperti against Siena in 1260. The Ghibellines resumed power and undid many of
17745-486: The late Middle Ages . It existed both in the Catholicised form presented by Thomas Aquinas , and in the more controversial " Averroist " form of authors like Marsilius of Padua . Machiavelli was critical of Catholic political thinking and may have been influenced by Averroism. But he rarely cites Plato and Aristotle, and most likely did not approve of them. Leo Strauss argued that the strong influence of Xenophon ,
17914-488: The late 15th century. Two members of the family were popes in the early 16th century: Leo X and Clement VII . Catherine de' Medici married King Henry II of France and, after his death in 1559, reigned as regent in France. Marie de' Medici married Henry IV of France and gave birth to the future King Louis XIII . The Medici reigned as Grand Dukes of Tuscany , starting with Cosimo I de' Medici in 1569 and ending with
18083-400: The leaders were banished from the city, a strategy which Machiavelli had favoured from the outset. From 1502 to 1503, he witnessed the brutal reality of the state-building methods of Cesare Borgia (1475–1507) and his father, Pope Alexander VI , who were then engaged in the process of trying to bring a large part of central Italy under their possession. The pretext of defending Church interests
18252-468: The lowest was −23.2 °C (−9.8 °F) on 12 January 1985. In 1200 the city was home to 50,000 people. By 1300 the population of the city proper was 120,000, with an additional 300,000 living in the Contado . Between 1500 and 1650 the population was around 70,000. As of 31 October 2010 , the population of the city proper is 370,702, while Eurostat estimates that 696,767 people live in
18421-823: The more recently developed Supertuscan blends. Within 32 km (20 mi) to the west is the Carmignano area, also home to flavourful sangiovese-based reds. The celebrated Chianti Rufina district, geographically and historically separated from the main Chianti region, is also few kilometres east of Florence. More recently, the Bolgheri region (about 150 km or 93 mi southwest of Florence) has become celebrated for its " Super Tuscan " reds such as Sassicaia and Ornellaia . Republic of Florence The Republic of Florence ( Latin : Res publica Florentina ; Old Italian : Republica di Fiorenza ), known officially as
18590-440: The more traditional target audience of a hereditary prince, it concentrates on the possibility of a "new prince". To retain power, the hereditary prince must carefully balance the interests of a variety of institutions to which the people are accustomed. By contrast, a new prince has the more difficult task in ruling: He must first stabilise his newfound power in order to build an enduring political structure. Machiavelli suggests that
18759-1441: The most beautiful cities in the world in 2010. Florence plays an important role in Italian fashion , and is ranked in the top 15 fashion capitals of the world by Global Language Monitor ; furthermore, it is a major national economic centre, as well as a tourist and industrial hub. Firenze comes from Florentiae , locative form of Florentia , in turn a name conveying good luck, from Latin : florēre , lit. 'to blossom'. Roman Republic , 59–27 BC Roman Empire , 27 BC–AD 285 Western Roman Empire , 285–476 Kingdom of Odoacer , 476–493 Ostrogothic Kingdom , 493–553 Eastern Roman Empire , 553–568 Lombard Kingdom , 570–773 Carolingian Empire , 774–797 Regnum Italiae , 797–1001 March of Tuscany , 1002–1115 [REDACTED] Republic of Florence , 1115–1532 [REDACTED] Duchy of Florence , 1532–1569 [REDACTED] Grand Duchy of Tuscany , 1569–1801 [REDACTED] Kingdom of Etruria , 1801–1807 [REDACTED] First French Empire , 1807–1815 [REDACTED] Grand Duchy of Tuscany , 1815–1859 [REDACTED] United Provinces of Central Italy , 1859–1860 [REDACTED] Kingdom of Italy , 1861–1943 [REDACTED] Italian Social Republic , 1943–1945 [REDACTED] Italy , 1946–present Florence originated as
18928-468: The name Leo X. This effectively brought the Papal States and Florence into a political union. Leo X ruled Florence by proxy, first appointing his brother Giuliano de' Medici to rule in his stead, and then in 1513, replacing Giuliano with his cousin, Lorenzo II de' Medici . Lorenzo II's government proved unpopular in Florence. According to U.S. President and historian John Adams , "at this time
19097-445: The noble is destroyed by the base. Therefore Thucydides' History arouses in the reader a sadness which is never aroused by Machiavelli's books. In Machiavelli we find comedies, parodies, and satires but nothing reminding of tragedy. One half of humanity remains outside of his thought. There is no tragedy in Machiavelli because he has no sense of the sacredness of "the common". – Strauss (1958 , p. 292) Amongst commentators, there are
19266-529: The north, and within the fertile valley of the Arno , the settlement quickly became an important commercial centre and in AD 285 became the capital of the Tuscia region. In centuries to come, the city experienced turbulent alternate periods of Ostrogoth and Byzantine rule, during which the city was fought over, helping to cause the population to fall to as low as 1,000 people. Peace returned under Lombard rule in
19435-426: The number of visitors had increased by 5.5% from the previous year. In 2013, Florence was listed as the second best world city by Condé Nast Traveler . Manufacturing and commerce remain highly important. Florence is Italy's 17th richest city in terms of average workers' earnings, with the figure being €23,265 (the overall city's income is €6,531,204,473), coming after Mantua , yet surpassing Bolzano . Florence
19604-475: The offices of a group of nine citizens selected by drawing lots every two months and who formed the government, or Signoria ; he was never, though, a full citizen of Florence because of the nature of Florentine citizenship in that time even under the republican regime. Machiavelli married Marietta Corsini in 1501. They had seven children, five sons and two daughters: Primerana, Bernardo, Lodovico, Guido, Piero [ it ] , Baccina and Totto. Machiavelli
19773-417: The other hand, Walter Russell Mead has argued that The Prince ' s advice presupposes the importance of ideas like legitimacy in making changes to the political system. Machiavelli is generally seen as being critical of Christianity as it existed in his time, specifically its effect upon politics, and also everyday life. In his opinion, Christianity, along with the teleological Aristotelianism that
19942-508: The population belonging to the Archdiocese of Florence . As of 2016, an estimated 30,000 people, or 8% of the population, identified as Muslim. Foreign-born population (31.12.2019) Tourism is, by far, the most important of all industries and most of the Florentine economy relies on the money generated by international arrivals and students studying in the city. The value tourism to the city totalled some €2.5 billion in 2015 and
20111-462: The population was Italian. An estimated 6,000 Chinese live in the city. The largest immigrant group came from other European countries (mostly Romanians and Albanians ): 3.52%, East Asia (mostly Chinese and Filipino ): 2.17%, the Americas: 1.41%, and North Africa (mostly Moroccan ): 0.9%. Much like the rest of Italy most of the people in Florence are Roman Catholic , with more than 90% of
20280-423: The possibility of trying to control one's future, were not unique to him. But humanists did not go so far as to promote the extra glory of deliberately aiming to establish a new state, in defiance of traditions and laws. While Machiavelli's approach had classical precedents, it has been argued that it did more than just bring back old ideas and that Machiavelli was not a typical humanist. Strauss (1958) argues that
20449-550: The powerful Medici family and numerous religious and republican revolutions. From 1865 to 1871 the city served as the capital of the Kingdom of Italy . The Florentine dialect forms the base of standard Italian and it became the language of culture throughout Italy due to the prestige of the masterpieces by Dante Alighieri , Petrarch , Giovanni Boccaccio , Niccolò Machiavelli and Francesco Guicciardini . The city attracts millions of tourists each year, and UNESCO declared
20618-409: The present name) was significantly widened and a large triumphal arch was constructed at the west end. A museum recording the destruction stands nearby today. The country's second capital city was superseded by Rome six years later, after the withdrawal of the French troops allowed the capture of Rome . During World War II the city experienced a year-long German occupation (1943–1944) being part of
20787-425: The princes to avoid the values of justice, mercy, temperance, wisdom, and love of their people in preference to the use of cruelty, violence, fear, and deception. Strauss takes up this opinion because he asserted that failure to accept the traditional opinion misses the "intrepidity of his thought" and "the graceful subtlety of his speech". Italian anti-fascist philosopher Benedetto Croce (1925) concludes Machiavelli
20956-565: The principal humanist of Florence. Bracciolini was born Arezzo in 1380. He toured Europe, searching for more ancient Greco-Roman manuscripts for Niccoli. Unlike his employer, Bracciolini also authored his own works. He was made the Chancellor of Florence shortly before his death, by Cosimo, who was his best friend. Florence hosted the Great Ecumenical Council in 1439; this council was launched in an attempt to reconcile
21125-502: The republic in 1512. Florence repudiated Medici authority for a second time in 1527, during the War of the League of Cognac . The Medici reassumed their rule in 1531 after an 11-month siege of the city, aided by Emperor Charles V . Pope Clement VII , himself a Medici, appointed his relative Alessandro de' Medici as the first "Duke of the Florentine Republic", thereby transforming
21294-508: The republic institutions to demand political reforms, freedom of speech in the councils and a greater share in the decision-making. Medici's party response was to use threats of force from private armies and Milanese troops and arranging a popular assembly dominated by Cosimo's supporters. It exiled the opponents of the regime and introduced the open vote in councils, "in order to unmask the anti-Medician rebels". From 1458 Cosimo withdrew from any official public role, but his control of Florence
21463-413: The republican themes in Machiavelli's political works, particularly the Discourses on Livy , can be found in medieval Italian literature which was influenced by classical authors such as Sallust . Classical political philosophy: Xenophon, Plato and Aristotle The Socratic school of classical political philosophy, especially Aristotle , had become a major influence upon European political thinking in
21632-522: The rural population around the city was probably close to 300,000. The Black Death of 1348 reduced it by over half, about 25,000 are said to have been supported by the city's wool industry: in 1345 Florence was the scene of an attempted strike by wool combers ( ciompi ), who in 1378 rose up in a brief revolt against oligarchic rule in the Revolt of the Ciompi . After their suppression, Florence came under
21801-421: The saying, often attributed to interpretations of The Prince , " The ends justify the means ". Fraud and deceit are held by Machiavelli as necessary for a prince to use. Violence may be necessary for the successful stabilization of power and introduction of new political institutions. Force may be used to eliminate political rivals, destroy resistant populations, and purge the community of other men strong enough of
21970-597: The second chancery, a medieval writing office that put Machiavelli in charge of the production of official Florentine government documents. Shortly thereafter, he was also made the secretary of the Dieci di Libertà e Pace . In the first decade of the sixteenth century, he carried out several diplomatic missions, most notably to the papacy in Rome. Florence sent him to Pistoia to pacify the leaders of two opposing factions which had broken into riots in 1501 and 1502; when this failed,
22139-631: The seeds of which had arguably been laid before the Black Death tore through Europe. Niccolò Niccoli was the leading Florence humanist scholar of the time. He appointed the first Professor of Greek , Manuel Chrysoloras (the founder of Hellenic studies in Italy), at the University of Florence in 1397. Niccoli was a keen collector of ancient manuscripts, which he bequeathed to Cosimo upon his death in 1437. Poggio Bracciolini succeeded Niccoli as
22308-583: The size of the French army at the gates of Pisa, he had to accept the humiliating conditions of the French king. These made the Florentines rebel, and they expelled Piero II. With his exile in 1494, the first period of Medici rule ended with the restoration of a republican government. During this period, the Dominican friar Girolamo Savonarola had become prior of the San Marco monastery in 1490. He
22477-402: The social benefits of stability and security can be achieved in the face of moral corruption. Machiavelli believed that public and private morality had to be understood as two different things in order to rule well. As a result, a ruler must be concerned not only with reputation, but also must be positively willing to act unscrupulously at the right times. Machiavelli believed that, for a ruler, it
22646-461: The sort he advised most famously in his work, The Prince . He claimed that his experience and reading of history showed him that politics has always involved deception, treachery, and crime. He advised rulers to do likewise when political necessity requires it, and argued specifically that successful reformers of states should not be blamed for killing other leaders who could block change. Machiavelli's Prince has been surrounded by controversy since it
22815-481: The sway (1382–1434) of the Albizzi family, who became bitter rivals of the Medici. In the 15th century, Florence was among the largest cities in Europe, with a population of 60,000, and was considered rich and economically successful. Cosimo de' Medici was the first Medici family member to essentially control the city from behind the scenes. Although the city was technically a democracy of sorts, his power came from
22984-502: The time of Ferdinando II de'Medici in the 17th century. But, for now, Giovanni's bank flourished. Beginning in 1389, Gian Galeazzo Visconti of Milan expanded his dominion into the Veneto, Piedmont, Emilia and Tuscany. During this period Florence, under the leadership of Maso degli Albizzi and Niccolò da Uzzano was involved in three wars with Milan (1390–92, 1397–98, 1400–02). The Florentine army, commanded by John Hawkwood , contained
23153-415: The two rarely come together, anyone compelled to choose will find greater security in being feared than in being loved." In much of Machiavelli's work, he often states that the ruler must adopt unsavoury policies for the sake of the continuance of his regime. A related and more controversial proposal often made is that he described how to do things in politics in a way which seemed neutral concerning who used
23322-408: The virtue and prudence that good princes should have. Therefore, while it was traditional to say that leaders should have virtues, especially prudence, Machiavelli's use of the words virtù and prudenza was unusual for his time, implying a spirited and immodest ambition. Mansfield describes his usage of virtù as a "compromise with evil". Famously, Machiavelli argued that virtue and prudence can help
23491-426: The war that makes their allegiance fickle and often unreliable when most needed), and instead staffed his army with citizens, a policy that yielded some positive results. By February 1506 he was able to have four hundred farmers marching on parade, suited (including iron breastplates), and armed with lances and small firearms. Under his command, Florentine citizen-soldiers conquered Pisa in 1509. Machiavelli's success
23660-574: The war was gargantuan, approximately 4,200,000 florins. To pay, the state had to change the tax system. The current estimo system was replaced with the catasto . The catasto was based on a citizen's entire wealth, while the estimo was simply a form of income tax. Apart from war, Filippo Brunelleschi created the renowned dome of the Santa Maria del Fiore , which astounded contemporaries and modern observers alike. The son of Giovanni di Bicci de' Medici, Cosimo de' Medici succeeded his father as
23829-521: The way Machiavelli combines classical ideas is new. While Xenophon and Plato also described realistic politics and were closer to Machiavelli than Aristotle was, they, like Aristotle, also saw philosophy as something higher than politics. Machiavelli was apparently a materialist who objected to explanations involving formal and final causation , or teleology . Machiavelli's promotion of ambition among leaders while denying any higher standard meant that he encouraged risk-taking, and innovation, most famously
23998-437: Was a centre of medieval European trade and finance and one of the wealthiest cities of that era. It is considered by many academics to have been the birthplace of the Renaissance , becoming a major artistic, cultural, commercial, political, economic and financial center. During this time, Florence rose to a position of enormous influence in Italy, Europe, and beyond. Its turbulent political history includes periods of rule by
24167-424: Was a classically influenced genre, with models at least as far back as Xenophon and Isocrates . While Gilbert emphasized the similarities, however, he agreed with all other commentators that Machiavelli was particularly novel in the way he used this genre, even when compared to his contemporaries such as Baldassare Castiglione and Erasmus . One of the major innovations Gilbert noted was that Machiavelli focused on
24336-413: Was a new combination: ...contemporary readers are reminded by Machiavelli's teaching of Thucydides; they find in both authors the same "realism", i.e., the same denial of the power of the gods or of justice and the same sensitivity to harsh necessity and elusive chance. Yet Thucydides never calls in question the intrinsic superiority of nobility to baseness, a superiority that shines forth particularly when
24505-487: Was an accomplished poet and musician and brought composers and singers to Florence, including Alexander Agricola , Johannes Ghiselin , and Heinrich Isaac . By contemporary Florentines (and since), he was known as "Lorenzo the Magnificent" (Lorenzo il Magnifico). Following Lorenzo de' Medici's death in 1492, he was succeeded by his son Piero II . When the French king Charles VIII invaded northern Italy , Piero II chose to resist his army. But when he realised
24674-495: Was better to be widely feared than to be greatly loved; a loved ruler retains authority by obligation, while a feared leader rules by fear of punishment. As a political theorist, Machiavelli emphasized the "necessity" for the methodical exercise of brute force or deceit, including extermination of entire noble families, to head off any chance of a challenge to the prince's authority. Scholars often note that Machiavelli glorifies instrumentality in state building, an approach embodied by
24843-526: Was born in a tumultuous era. The Italian city-states , and the families and individuals who ran them could rise and fall suddenly, as popes and the kings of France, Spain, and the Holy Roman Empire waged acquisitive wars for regional influence and control. Political-military alliances continually changed, featuring condottieri (mercenary leaders), who changed sides without warning, and the rise and fall of many short-lived governments. Machiavelli
25012-496: Was elected Pope Clement VII, he appointed Ippolito de' Medici and Alessandro de' Medici to rule Florence, under the guardianship of Cardinal Passerini . Ippolito was the son of Giuliano de' Medici, while Alessandro was allegedly the son of Clement VII. Cardinal Passerini's regency government proved highly unpopular. In May 1527, Rome was sacked by the Holy Roman Empire. The city was destroyed, and Pope Clement VII
25181-587: Was even called a satire , for example by Jean-Jacques Rousseau (1712–1778). Scholars such as Leo Strauss (1899–1973) and Harvey Mansfield ( b. 1932 ) have stated that sections of The Prince and his other works have deliberately esoteric statements throughout them. However, Mansfield states that this is the result of Machiavelli's seeing grave and serious things as humorous because they are "manipulable by men", and sees them as grave because they "answer human necessities". The Marxist theorist Antonio Gramsci (1891–1937) argued that Machiavelli's audience
25350-450: Was excommunicated. The Florentines, tired of his teachings, turned against him and arrested him. He was convicted as a heretic, hanged and burned on the Piazza della Signoria on 23 May 1498. His ashes were dispersed in the Arno river. Another Florentine of this period was Niccolò Machiavelli , whose prescriptions for Florence's regeneration under strong leadership have often been seen as
25519-449: Was famed for his penitential sermons, lambasting what he viewed as widespread immorality and attachment to material riches. He praised the exile of the Medici as the work of God, punishing them for their decadence. He seized the opportunity to carry through political reforms leading to a more democratic rule. But when Savonarola publicly accused Pope Alexander VI of corruption, he was banned from speaking in public. When he broke this ban, he
25688-509: Was greater than ever. In the spring of 1459 he entertained the new pope Pius II , who stopped in Florence on his way to the Council of Mantua to declare a crusade against the Ottomans, and Galeazzo Maria Sforza , Francesco's son, who was to escort the pope from Florence to Mantua . In his memoirs, Pius said that Cosimo "was considered the arbiter of war and peace, the regulator of law; less
25857-568: Was hit hard by the Black Death . Having originated in the Orient, the plague arrived in Messina in 1347. The plague devastated Europe, robbing it of an estimated one-third of its population. This, combined with the economic downturn, took its toll on the city-state. The ensuing collapse of the feudal system changed the social composition of Europe forever; it was one of the first steps out of
26026-453: Was imprisoned. During the tumult, a faction of Republicans drove out the Medici from Florence. A new wave of Puritanism swept through the city. Many new restricting fundamentalist laws were passed. In 1529, Clement VII signed the Treaty of Barcelona with Charles V , under which Charles would, in exchange for the Pope's blessing, invade Florence and restore the Medici. They were restored after
26195-406: Was later called the scientific spirit in which questions of good and bad are ignored, and the observer attempts to discover only what really happens. Machiavelli felt that his early schooling along the lines of traditional classical education was essentially useless for the purpose of understanding politics. Nevertheless, he advocated intensive study of the past, particularly regarding the founding of
26364-525: Was named Grand Duke of Tuscany in 1569; in all Tuscany, only the Republic of Lucca (later a Duchy ) and the Principality of Piombino were independent from Florence. The extinction of the Medici dynasty and the accession in 1737 of Francis Stephen , duke of Lorraine and husband of Maria Theresa of Austria , led to Tuscany's temporary inclusion in the territories of the Austrian crown. It became
26533-447: Was named King of Florence). The Medici returned to power in Florence in 1530, with the armies of Holy Roman Emperor Charles V and the blessings of Pope Clement VII (Giulio de' Medici). Florence officially became a monarchy in 1531, when Emperor Charles and Pope Clement named Alessandro de' Medici as Duke of the Florentine Republic . The Medici's monarchy would last over two centuries. Alessandro's successor, Cosimo I de' Medici ,
26702-514: Was ordered to establish an overseas university campus for demobilised American service men and women in Florence. The first American university for service personnel was established in June 1945 at the School of Aeronautics. Some 7,500 soldier-students were to pass through the university during its four one-month sessions (see G. I. American Universities ). In November 1966, the Arno flooded parts of
26871-450: Was published. Some consider it to be a straightforward description of political reality. Others view The Prince as a manual, teaching would-be tyrants how they should seize and maintain power. Even into recent times, some scholars, such as Leo Strauss , have restated the traditional opinion that Machiavelli was a "teacher of evil". Even though Machiavelli has become most famous for his work on principalities, scholars also give attention to
27040-407: Was repudiated in September 1512, when Cardinal Giovanni de' Medici captured Florence with Papal troops during the War of the League of Cambrai . The Medici rule of Florence was thus restored. Soon after retaking Florence, Cardinal Giovanni de' Medici was recalled to Rome. Pope Julius II had just died, and he needed to be present for the ensuing Papal conclave . Giovanni was elected Pope, taking
27209-603: Was restored on the throne of Tuscany at the Congress of Vienna but finally deposed in 1859. Tuscany became a region of the Kingdom of Italy in 1861. Florence replaced Turin as Italy's capital in 1865 and, in an effort to modernise the city, the old market in the Piazza del Mercato Vecchio and many medieval houses were pulled down and replaced by a more formal street plan with newer houses. The Piazza (first renamed Piazza Vittorio Emanuele II , then Piazza della Repubblica ,
27378-570: Was ruled by a council known as the Signoria of Florence . The signoria was chosen by the gonfaloniere (titular ruler of the city), who was elected every two months by Florentine guild members. During the Republic's history, Florence was an important cultural, economic, political and artistic force in Europe . Its coin, the florin , was the dominant trade coin of Western Europe for large scale transactions and became widely imitated throughout
27547-425: Was sealed. Fourteen years later in 1453, Constantinople fell to the Ottomans. Cosimo's fervent patronage transformed Florence into the epitome of a Renaissance city. He employed Donatello , Brunelleschi , and Michelozzo . All these artistic commissions cost Cosimo over 600,000 florins. Foreign relations, both as a backdrop to Cosimo's rise to power and during the first twenty years of his rule, were dominated by
27716-536: Was short-lived. In August 1512, the Medici, backed by Pope Julius II , used Spanish troops to defeat the Florentines at Prato . In the wake of the siege, Piero Soderini resigned as Florentine head of state and fled into exile. The experience would, like Machiavelli's time in foreign courts and with the Borgia, heavily influence his political writings. The Florentine city-state and the republic were dissolved, with Machiavelli then being removed from office and banished from
27885-404: Was taught grammar, rhetoric, and Latin by his teacher, Paolo da Ronciglione. It is unknown whether Machiavelli knew Greek; Florence was at the time one of the centres of Greek scholarship in Europe. In 1494 Florence restored the republic , expelling the Medici family that had ruled Florence for some sixty years. Shortly after the execution of Savonarola , Machiavelli was appointed to an office of
28054-492: Was the Arno river , providing power and access for the industry (mainly textile industry), and access to the Mediterranean sea for international trade, helping the growth of an industrious merchant community. The Florentine merchant banking skills became recognised in Europe after they brought decisive financial innovation (e.g. bills of exchange , double-entry bookkeeping system ) to medieval fairs. This period also saw
28223-586: Was the common people, as opposed to the ruling class, who were already made aware of the methods described through their education. The Discourses on the First Ten Books of Titus Livius , written around 1517, and published in 1531, often referred to simply as the Discourses or Discorsi , is nominally a discussion regarding the classical history of early Ancient Rome , although it strays far from this subject matter and also uses contemporary political examples to illustrate points. Machiavelli presents it as
28392-500: Was the greatest artistic patron of the Renaissance. He patronised Leonardo da Vinci , Michelangelo and Botticelli , among others. During Lorenzo's reign, the Renaissance truly descended on Florence. Lorenzo commissioned a multitude of amazing pieces of art and also enjoyed collecting fine gems. Lorenzo had many children with his wife Clarice Orsini , including the future Pope Leo X and his eventual successor in Florence, Piero
28561-574: Was used as a partial justification by the Borgias. Other excursions to the court of Louis XII and the Spanish court influenced his writings such as The Prince . At the start of the 16th century, Machiavelli conceived of a militia for Florence, and he then began recruiting and creating it. He distrusted mercenaries (a distrust that he explained in his official reports and then later in his theoretical works for their unpatriotic and uninvested nature in
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