Chapter 17
Niccolò Machiavelli
Machiavelli's advice reflects the harsh realities of power in the volatile Italian city-states of his time. The contrast to the chivalric ideals of medieval kingship is stark; Machiavelli's prince must prioritize stability over virtue. Cesare Borgia serves as his example—a ruler whose calculated cruelty brought order to chaos. Machiavelli challenges any easy moral dichotomy by arguing that strategic severity can sometimes be the greater mercy.