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1503, Machiavelli became keenly aware of Borgia's dependence on his papal father, on France, and on mercenaries. The praise of the "foundations" Borgia allegedly laid to remedy this dependence (including a fantasized conquest of Tuscany) is not Machiavelli's own assessment but the voice of Borgia's self-dramatizing and self-deceiving exaggerations.
This may explain why he can approve of Borgia but nominally condemn Agathocles and Oliverotto: He views Borgia as a bringer of order and unity to a divided and suffering Italy. As long as evils are turned as quickly as possible to benefits for one's subjects, they can be forgiven, because, as Machiavelli has already observed, it is impossible ...
- The Early Years of Cesare Borgia
- The Adult Life of Cesare Borgia
- Niccolò Machiavelli and Leonardo Da Vinci
- Machiavellianism and The Dark Triad of Personality
- Cesare Borgia
He was the illegitimate son of a cardinal of Valencia, Rodrigo Borja, who later became Pope Alexander VI. He reached his position through nepotism and corruption. Cesare Borgia’s childhood was a constant lesson of intrigue, manipulation, alliances, and conspiracies. Some of his biographers relate the machinations his father did to ensure his childr...
Eventually and shortly after his brother’s death, he gathered an army of mercenaries. Leonardo da Vinci served there as an engineer. Cesare and his army advanced through the Italian states, increasing his power and extending his father’s domain. Their goal was to unify Italy under the command of the Borgia family. His strategies either involved his...
A big part of The Prince by Niccolò Machiavellitakes after Cesare Borgia. In this work, Machiavelli idealizes him and uses him as an example as the ideal exercise of politics. An exercise that, according to Machiavelli, doesn’t have to respond to morality but only to the laws of power. It seems that Cesare Borgia wasn’t the exclusive model of Machi...
Machiavellianism in psychology refers to a personality trait. It defines people who use others as a means to achieve their own ends. They have no problem manipulating and exploiting others at will to do so. Thus, the Machiavellian personality is manipulative and strategic and differs from narcissists or psychopaths in that it’s more withdrawn and c...
People often use the terms narcissism, psychopathy, and Machiavellianism interchangeably because they have similar characteristics. The three personality types comprise the dark triad, a psychological concept that encompasses a set of shared traits such as self-centeredness, lack of empathy, and selfishness. A good way to understand Machiavellianis...
When Machiavelli declares in chapter 7 that Cesare Borgia “made use of every deed and did all those things that should be done by a prudent and virtuous man,” does he mean that Borgia was a prudent and virtuous man—or insinuate that his actions merely simu-lated genuine virtú?
Nov 12, 2010 · If Machiavelli took religion seriously and thought the true Christianity could vigorously support republican liberty, why did he reserve so much praise for someone like Duke Cesare Borgia, whose violence and duplicity Machiavelli made legendary? Viroli shows that Borgia himself thought, and Machiavelli agreed, that God would excuse him.
Sep 1, 2013 · The praise of the “foundations” Borgia allegedly laid to remedy this dependence (including a fantasized conquest of Tuscany) is not Machiavelli's own assessment but the voice of...
Nov 18, 2018 · Machiavelli meets ‘The Prince’. By Samantha Morris. “It is better to be feared than loved, if you cannot be both” ~ Niccolo Machiavelli. On 24th June 1502, the Florentine politician and diplomat Niccolo Machiavelli came face to face with Cesare Borgia. Borgia’s name had long been known to Machiavelli and indeed the Florentine people ...
