In 1513, Niccolo Machiavelli wrote his first work, "The Prince". The aim of the text was to advise leaders of principalities how to maintain and nurture political power. The Prince was originally written to advise the then ruler of Florence, Lorenzo Di Medici. At the time of writing, Florence was rife with violence, blackmail, political instability and political conflicts.
In The Prince, Machiavelli provides several examples of how to maintain political power, and examines the case of Caesar Borgia, a cruel and bloodthirsty dictator who was despised by many. By doing so, does Machiavelli argue that political leaders should strive to simulate the amoral rule of Caesar Borgia in order to retain power?.
"A wise man ought always to follow the paths beaten by great men, and to imitate those who have been supreme, so that if his ability does not equal theirs, at least it will savour of it." .
Machiavelli has been seen as the founder of modern political science, owing to his empirical methodology when assessing the political world. His understanding of politics derived from examining how things are done, rather than how things should be done. Because of this, Machiavelli argues that for a prince to achieve glory, he must first take heed of historical events. Machiavelli notes that human nature was, and is, consistent throughout time; therefore principles in political history will still be relevant to the modern ruler. .
"Machiavelli held a mirror up to reality; he did not seek to change that reality in any fundamental way He was soaked in the spirit of Florentine humanism and learned from his predecessors." .
Whilst Machiavelli held realism as a key aspect of political rule, he also notes that fortune is;.
"the arbiter of half the things we do, leaving the other half or so to be controlled by ourselves." .
In The Prince, Machiavelli outlines actions a prince should take to insure political success.