Niccolo Machiavelli was born in Florence on May 3rd, 1469. He received a humanistic education typical of the time, and went on to become a banker in Rome. He then returned to Florence in 1494, the same year the Medici family, who had been the ruling family of Florence for decades, lost their throne to Charles VIII of France. In 1500, Machiavelli served as the diplomat of Florence to France, and spent the following decade serving his state, …showed first 75 words of 1045 total…

…showed last 75 words of 1045 total…Machiavelli’s political philosophy; it is indeed an enjoyable book. It does an excellent job of conveying one man’s feelings, and well represents the views of his time. While he may have intended The Prince to persuade the reader to believe that morals are a counter productive in a good leadership, Machiavelli’s cynical views may in fact lead the reader to develop a new respect for them. It certainly did so for me.