Machiavelli’s Views for:

And this, most likely, would lead to his downfall. And the first way to lose it is to neglect this art; and the way to acquire it is to be well versed in the art” (38). ” Clearly, Machiavelli believed military power was the foundation and strength of a state and that only a prince who was knowledgeable about warfare and had enough military force would be able to maintain this territory. Also, Machiavelli believed that people would obey a prince who is loved, but not feared, only when it would be in the people’s best interest. Many Writers and military leaders Napoleon was the greatest military genius of his time. Unwarranted extreme taxes could lead to resistance from discontented, impoverished subjects (Machiavelli 41). He reinforces the prince’s need to be feared by claiming that men worry less about doing injury to one that makes him loved than a prince that makes himself feared. First, Due to always being armed, Napoleon crowned himself King of the French nation and created an empire that covered most western and central Europe. He maintained his army in a high readiness for war but also rewarded the French citizens by his influence on the arts and also he brought modern gas lighting to France. Machiavelli goes on to argue, “For this is one of those vices that permit him to rule” (42). Machiavelli believed that it was better for a prince to want to be thought of as compassionate and not as ruthless. Machiavelli goes on to say that as long as danger is far away from the subject’s homes they belong to the prince, but when danger come close, even up to their door, they will turn away from him. Machiavelli put so much stock in always being prepared for war that he insisted a prince should not have any other endeavor or contemplation, nor select anything else for his profession, except war and its rules and regulations (38). ” Of equal importance is Machiavelli’s view on how a prince maintains his territory.