Niccolò Machiavelli (1469–1527), in Florence on born May 3, was a Florentine statesman and Renaissance Italy's greatest political philosopher; he died in Florence on June 21. He is often regarded as the first to take a scientific approach to politics.

Major Contributions to Political Thought

Machiavelli is known chiefly as the author of two books, The Prince and The Discourses on Livy (both c. 1517). The former concerns the acquisition of principalities, a form of government in which the state belongs to an individual or a family. The latter is a meditation on republics, in which the state is public rather than private property. The notoriety of these books is largely due to the absolute ruthlessness advocated by Machiavelli. In The Prince, he recommends acting against faith, charity, humanity, and religion. In The Discourses, he criticizes Giovampagolo Baglioni because that tyrant had the opportunity, but not...