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M Machiavelli is history’s most startling political commentator. Recent interpreters have minimised his originality, but this book restores his A radicalism. Robert Black shows a clear development in Machiavelli’s thought. In his most subversive works – The Prince, the Discourses on Livy, The Ass and Mandragola – he rejected the moral and political values C inherited by the Renaissance from antiquity and the middle ages. These outrageous compositions were all written in mid-life, when Machiavelli was a political outcast in his native Florence. Later he was reconciled with the H Florentine establishment, and as a result his final compositions – including his famous Florentine Histories – represent a return to more conventional norms. I A This lucid work is perfect for students of Medieval and Early Modern History, Renaissance Studies and Italian Literature, or anyone keen to learn more about one of history’s most potent, influential and arresting writers. V RobeRt black is Professor of Renaissance History at the University of Leeds, with publications in the fields of Renaissance humanism, school and E university education, Florentine political history, Renaissance historiography and the history of the classical tradition. His books include Benedetto Accolti L and the Florentine Renaissance (1985), Humanism and Education in Medieval and Renaissance Italy (2001), Education and Society in Florentine Tuscany L (2007) and Studies in Renaissance Humanism and Politics (2011). HISTORY/RENAISSANCE I r o b e r MACHIAVELLI t b Cover image: Portrait of Niccolò Machiavelli by l Cristofano dell’Altissimo ©Alinari Archives/Corbis. a c k ROBERT BLACK www.routledge.com Routledge titles are available as eBook editions in a range of digital formats Machiavelli AA0011__BBLLAACC44006622__0011__SSEE__FFMM..iinndddd ii 88//11//1133 22::5522 PPMM Page Intentionally Left Blank AA0011__BBLLAACC44006622__0011__SSEE__FFMM..iinndddd iiii 88//11//1133 22::5522 PPMM Machiavelli Robert Black AA0011__BBLLAACC44006622__0011__SSEE__FFMM..iinndddd iiiiii 88//11//1133 22::5522 PPMM First published 2013 by Routledge 2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon OX14 4RN and by Routledge 711 Third Avenue, New York, NY 10017 Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business © 2013 Robert Black The right of Robert Black to be identifi ed as author of this work has been asserted by him in accordance with sections 77 and 78 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilised in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers. Trademark notice: Product or corporate names may be trademarks or registered trademarks, and are used only for identifi cation and explanation without intent to infringe. British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data A catalog record for this book has been requested ISBN: 978-0-415-73637-4 (hbk) ISBN: 978-0-582-78406-2 (pbk) Typeset in Sabon by Graphicraft Limited AA0011__BBLLAACC44006622__0011__SSEE__FFMM..iinndddd iivv 88//11//1133 22::5522 PPMM To Jane AA0011__BBLLAACC44006622__0011__SSEE__FFMM..iinndddd vv 88//11//1133 22::5522 PPMM Page Intentionally Left Blank AA0011__BBLLAACC44006622__0011__SSEE__FFMM..iinndddd vvii 88//11//1133 22::5522 PPMM Contents About the author x Publisher’s acknowledgements x i Abbreviations xii Editions, citations and translations xvii Preface x viii PART ONE Machiavelli and Florence 1 Florence and the Machiavelli family 3 2 Early life, education and fi rst writings 1 4 3 Chancery career: Machiavelli and Florentine politics 30 4 The chancery years: diplomatic activities and literary production 4 9 Diplomacy 49 Chancery writings and private correspondence 54 Poetry 64 PART TWO The voice of experience 5 The Prince : context 73 Interregnum 73 Dismissal, imprisonment, torture and release 75 Waiting for something to turn up 79 The correspondence with Vettori 81 Aims and setting 84 Contents and genesis 87 Date 89 Discontinuities 96 AA0011__BBLLAACC44006622__0011__SSEE__FFMM..iinndddd vviiii 88//11//1133 22::5522 PPMM viii CONTENTS 6 The Prince : message and meaning 9 9 The environment of politics 99 The purpose of politics 101 Virtus , virtù and the virtues 103 Forces beyond reason 108 Ancient and modern examples 112 Machiavelli in The Prince : constitutional monarchist? Visionary or realist? 115 Dénouement 119 PART THREE The return to classical humanism 7 The Discourses : context 129 1515–1519: personal frustrations and the Second Decade 129 The Discourses : date and genesis 130 The Rucellai gardens and the Discourses 138 8 The Discourses : meaning and signifi cance 142 Scope and aims 142 The Discourses and The Prince : core ideas 145 The Discourses : developing views 153 New directions 159 A new political vocabulary? 171 The Discourses and The Prince : the lessons of ancient history 174 The Prince and the D iscourses: two contradictory texts? 175 PART FOUR Man of letters 9 Poetry, theatre, narrative 179 The Ass 179 Mandragola 186 Belfagor, Serenata, On Occasion 194 Discourse on Our Language 199 Clizia 202 AA0011__BBLLAACC44006622__0011__SSEE__FFMM..iinndddd vviiiiii 88//11//1133 22::5522 PPMM CONTENTS ix PART FIVE The return to diplomacy and public service 10 Politics and history 213 The Art of War 213 The Life of Castruccio Castracani of Lucca 223 Later constitutional writings 229 Florentine Histories 242 11 The diplomat and adviser to princes reborn 263 The correspondence with Guicciardini 263 The diplomat recalled 266 The public servant reinstated 274 The last literary productions 278 The end 281 Bibliography 2 88 Notes 311 Index 3 61 AA0011__BBLLAACC44006622__0011__SSEE__FFMM..iinndddd iixx 88//11//1133 22::5522 PPMM
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