Niccolò di Bernardo dei Machiavelli Quotes
-
Is it better to be loved or feared?
-
In respect to foresight and firmness, the people are more prudent, more stable, and have better judgement than princes.
-
When they remain in garrison, soldiers are maintained with fear and punishment; when they are then led to war, with hope and reward.
-
Besides what has been said, people are fickle by nature; and it is a simple to convince them of something but difficult to hold them in that conviction; and, therefore, affairs should be managed in such a way that when they no longer believe, they can be made to believe by force.
-
There is simply no comparison between a man who is armed and one who is not. It is simply unreasonable to expect that an armed man should obey one who is unarmed, or that an unarmed man should remain safe and secure when his servants are armed.
-
Where the very safety of the country depends upon the resolution to be taken, no consideration of justice or injustice, humanity or cruelty, nor of glory or of shame, should be allowed to prevail. But putting all other considerations aside, the only question should be: What course will save the life and liberty of the country?
-
In our own days we have seen no princes accomplish great results save those who have been accounted miserly.
-
All the States and Governments by which men are or ever have been ruled, have been and are either Republics or Princedoms.
-
In conclusion, the arms of others either fall from your back, or they weigh you down, or they bind you fast.
-
The first method for estimating the intelligence of a ruler is to look at the men he has around him.
-
A prince is also respected when he is a true friend and a true enemy; that is, when he declares himself on the side of one prince against another without any reservation.
-
Still, a prince should make himself feared in such a way that if he does not gain love, he at any rate avoids hatred; for fear and the absence of hatred may well go together, and will be always attained by one who abstains from interfering with the property of his citizens and subjects or with their women.
-
Benefits should be granted little by little, so that they may be better enjoyed.
-
All the armed prophets conquered; all the unarmed ones perished.
-
One of the great secrets of the day is to know how to take possession of popular prejudices and passions, in such a way as to introduce a confusion of principles which makes impossible all understanding between those who speak the same language and have the same interests.
-
In truth, there never was any remarkable lawgiver amongst any people who did not resort to divine authority, as otherwise his laws would not have been accepted by the people; for there are many good laws, the importance of which is known to be the sagacious lawgiver, but the reasons for which are not sufficiently evident to enable him to persuade others to submit to them; and therefore do wise men, for the purpose of removing this difficulty, resort to divine authority.
-
For the mob is always impressed by appearances and by results, and the world is composed of the mob.
-
So in all human affairs one notices, if one examines them closely, that it is impossible to remove one inconvenience without another emerging.
-
Thus it is well to seem merciful, faithful, humane, sincere, religious, and also to be so; but you must have the mind so disposed that when it is needful to be otherwise you may be able to change to the opposite qualities.
-
My view is that it is desirable to be both loved and feared; but it is difficult to achieve both and, if one of them has to be lacking, it is much safer to be feared than loved.
-
Among other evils which being unarmed brings you, it causes you to be despised.
-
The innovator has for enemies all who have done well under the old, and lukewarm defenders in those who may do well under the new.
-
States that rise quickly, just as all the other things of nature that are born and grow rapidly, cannot have roots and ramifications; the first bad weather kills them...
-
He who has once begun to live by rapine always finds reasons for taking what is not his.