Books with author Niccolo Machiavelli

Yale Univ Press, New Haven, CT, 1950. Hard Cover. First edition thus, VG(+)/no DJs, salmon cloth, Volume One: 585pp, Volume Two: 390pp w/one fold-out, texts are clean and fresh-in VG++ cond., short tear to bottom page of 341 (now repaired), short tear to spine head/slight bend to corners w/bump to fore-edge of Volume One noted. Rare Masterpieces of Philosophy and Science, edited by Dr. W. Stark, translated by Leslie J. Walker, published on the Louis Stern Memorial Fund.

When Machiavelli’s brief treatise on Renaissance statecraft and princely power was posthumously published in 1532, it generated a debate that has raged unabated until the present day. Based upon Machiavelli’s first-hand experience as an emissary of the Florentine Republic to the courts of Europe, The Prince analyzes the usually violent means by which men seize, retain, and lose political power. Machiavelli added a dimension of incisive realism to one of the major philosophical and political issues of his time, especially the relationship between public deeds and private morality. His book provides a remarkably uncompromising picture of the true nature of power, no matter in what era or by whom it is exercised.

If any book could be called legendary, surely it is this one. Its author, Italian diplomat and philosopher NICCOLÒ MACHIAVELLI (1469-1527) considered it his greatest work. Indeed, his thoughts on politics, as laid out so famously in this brief but profound work, have become so synonymous with him that his name has become an adjective: Machiavellian. How is political power achieved? How is it maintained? Though Machiavelli states explicitly that he is not discussing "Republics" here, only "Princedoms," this coldly rational guidebook to taking control and holding onto it contains such universal insights into human nature and the structure of human systems that his "advice" serves equally well in almost any power structure. With applications in such diverse realms as business, the military, even role-playing games, Machiavelli's rules for ruling continue to be required reading for students of politics, philosophy, and ethics.

- Introduction from SAS and Gulf War hero Andy McNab DCM MM- The 1882 edition of The Art of War- Preface by Niccolò Machiavelli- Translated from Italian by Christian E Detmold- Bonus material: Introduction by Henry Cust, MP- Complete with all the original illustrations- Beautifully formatted in this Apostrophe Books editionThe Art of War sees political and military theory brought together by one of the subjects’ greatest minds. This renowned work by Niccolò Machiavelli (1469-1527) has been pored over by the likes of Napoleon and Frederick the Great, and remains one of the most important works on conflict today.“To know how to recognise an opportunity in war, and take it, benefits you more than anything else,” he wrote. “Nature creates few men brave; industry and training makes many.”The masterpiece is presented in this beautifully-produced Apostrophe Books edition with an introduction by Gulf War legend and bestselling author Andy McNab – the British Army’s most highly decorated serving soldier when he left the SAS.

As a manual on realpolitik, this sixteenth-century work has provoked more heated debates than any other political treatise. While it rejects lofty ideals, it nonetheless derives valuable insights from the author’s first-hand experience as a respected envoy of Florence. Italy in the renaissance period was a battleground of warring factions, both within states and without, so successful governance was no easy task. Niccolò Machiavelli examines how princedoms in Renaissance Italy can be effectively governed and maintained. This he does by noting the “…actions of great men, acquired in the course of (his) long experience of modern affairs and a continual study of antiquity.” Arguing from such empirical evidence, he shows what works to achieve stable control, and what does not. Harsh measures are sometimes necessary but contrary to a common misconception held by many of his critics, he warns against ignoring the welfare and goodwill of the populace. Indeed, some commentators feel Machiavelli was unjustly maligned, pointing out that here was a man who was unremitting in his efforts to secure a good and popular government for his native Florence, and who wanted Italy’s honour and pride restored. It was to these ends that he wrote The Prince.

The Prince is sometimes claimed to be one of the first works of modern philosophy, especially modern political philosophy, in which the effective truth is taken to be more important than any abstract ideal. It was also in direct conflict with the dominant Catholic and scholastic doctrines of the time concerning politics and ethics. Although it is relatively short, the treatise is the most remembered of Machiavelli's works and the one most responsible for bringing the word "Machiavellian" into usage as a pejorative. It even contributed to the modern negative connotations of the words "politics" and "politician" in western countries. In terms of subject matter it overlaps with the much longer Discourses on Livy, which was written a few years later. In its use of near-contemporary Italians as examples of people who perpetrated criminal deeds for politics, another lesser-known work by Machiavelli which The Prince has been compared to is the Life of Castruccio Castracani. The descriptions within The Prince have the general theme of accepting that the aims of princes – such as glory and survival – can justify the use of immoral means to achieve those ends: He who neglects what is done for what ought to be done, sooner effects his ruin than his preservation.