Niccolo Machiavelli Quotes About War

Quotes about: War

• A prince... must learn from the fox and the lion... One must be a fox in order to recognize traps, and a lion to frighten off wolves. Those who act simply as lions are stupid. So it follows that a prudent ruler cannot, and must not, honour his word when it places him at a disadvantage and when the reasons for which he made his promise no longer exist.

  Niccolo Machiavelli

  Art, War, Stupid

• It makes him contemptible to be considered fickle, frivolous, effeminate, mean-spirited, irresolute, from all of which a prince should guard himself as from a rock; and he should endeavour to show in his actions greatness, courage, gravity, and fortitude; and in his private dealings with his subjects let him show that his judgments are irrevocable, and maintain himself in such reputation that no one can hope either to deceive him or to get round him.

  Niccolo Machiavelli

  Art, War, Mean

  Niccolo Machiavelli (2015). “The Prince”, p.80, Xist Publishing

• He who wishes to be obeyed must know how to command.

  Niccolo Machiavelli

  Crazy, War, Wish

  Niccolo Machiavelli (2017). “The Prince”, p.169, Race Point Publishing

• In the armies and among every ten men there is one of more life, of more heart, or at least of more authority, who with his courage, with words and by example keeps the others firm and disposed to fight.

  Niccolo Machiavelli

  Art, War, Fighting

  "The Complete Art of War".

• If you only notice human proceedings, you may observe that all who attain great power and riches, make use of either force or fraud; and what they have acquired either by deceit or violence, in order to conceal the disgraceful methods of attainment, they endeavor to sanctify with the false title of honest gains.

  Niccolo Machiavelli

  Art, War, Order

  Niccolo Machiavelli (2018). “History of Florence and the Affairs of Italy”, p.115, Ozymandias Press

• 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.

  Niccolo Machiavelli

  Art, War, Men

• The reason is that nature has so created men that they are able to desire everything but are not able to attain everything: so that the desire being always greater than the acquisition, there results discontent with the possession and little satisfaction to themselves from it. From this arises the changes in their fortunes; for as men desire, some to have more, some in fear of losing their acquisition, there ensues enmity and war, from which results the ruin of that province and the elevation of another.

  Niccolo Machiavelli

  Art, War, Men

  "Discourses on Livy". Book by Niccolo Machiavelli, Book 1, Ch. 37, (as translated by LJ Walker and B Crick, 1517.

• Conquered states that have been accustomed to liberty and the government of their own laws can be held by the conqueror in three different ways. The first is to ruin them; the second, for the conqueror to go and reside there in person; and the third is to allow them to continue to live under their own laws, subject to a regular tribute, and to create in them a government of a few, who will keep the country friendly to the conqueror

  Niccolo Machiavelli

  Country, War, Government

• A prudent man... must behave like those archers who, if they are skillful, when the target seems too distant, know the capabilities of their bow and aim a good deal higher than their objective, not in order to shoot so high but so that by aiming high they can reach the target.

  Niccolo Machiavelli

  Art, War, Archer

• You must know, then, that there are two methods of fighting, the one by law, the other by force: the first method is that of men, the second of beasts; but as the first method is often insufficient, one must have recourse to the second.

  Niccolo Machiavelli

  Art, War, Fighting

  Niccolo Machiavelli (2017). “The Prince”, p.55, Knickerbocker Classics

• So far as he is able, a prince should stick to the path of good but, if the necessity arises, he should know how to follow evil.

  Niccolo Machiavelli

  War, Evil, Able

  NICCOLO MACHIAVELLI (1947). “THE PRINCE”

• Nevertheless, he must be cautious in believing and acting, and must not inspire fear of his own accord, and must proceed in a temperate manner with prudence and humanity, so that too much confidence does not render him incautious, and too much diffidence does not render him intolerant. From this arises the question whether it is better to be loved more than feared, or feared more than loved.

  Niccolo Machiavelli

  Art, War, Believe

  "The Prince". Book by Niccolò Machiavelli, ch. 17, as translated by Luigi Ricci (1903), 1513.

• Men ought either to be indulged or utterly destroyed, for if you merely offend them they take vengeance, but if you injure them greatly they are unable to retaliate, so that the injury done to a man ought to be such that vengeance cannot be feared.

  Niccolo Machiavelli

  War, Men, Political

• There is nothing as likely to succeed as what the enemy believes you cannot attempt.

  Niccolo Machiavelli

  Art, War, Believe

• Wars begin when you will, but they do not end when you please.

  Niccolo Machiavelli

  War, Ends, Please

  "Florentine Histories" by Niccolò Machiavelli, 1526.

• I assert once again as a truth to which history as a whole bears witness that men may second their fortune, but cannot oppose it; that they may weave its warp, but cannot break it. Yet they should never give up, because there is always hope, though they know not the end and more towards it along roads which cross one another and as yet are unexplored; and since there is hope, they should not despair, no matter what fortune brings or in what travail they find themselves.

  Niccolo Machiavelli

  Art, Giving Up, War

  "Discourses on Livy" by Niccolò Machiavelli, book 2, ch. 29, as translated by LJ Walker and B Crick, 1517.

• Before all else, be armed.

  Niccolo Machiavelli

  Peace, War, Philosophical

• How laudable it is for a prince to keep good faith and live with integrity, and not with astuteness, every one knows. Still the experience of our times shows those princes to have done great things who have had little regard for good faith, and have been able by astuteness to confuse men's brains, and who have ultimately overcome those who have made loyalty their foundation.

  Niccolo Machiavelli

  Loyalty, Art, Integrity

  Niccolo Machiavelli (2017). “The Prince”, p.55, Knickerbocker Classics

• Therefore it is unnecessary for a prince to have all the good qualities I have enumerated, but it is very necessary to appear to have them.

  Niccolo Machiavelli

  Peace, War, Quality

  Niccolo Machiavelli (2010). “The Prince”, p.73, FastPencil Inc

• There is no avoiding war; it can only be postponed to the advantage of others.

  Niccolo Machiavelli

  Peace, Military, War

  "The Prince". Book by Niccolò Machiavelli, 1513.

• And when he is obliged to take the life of any one, to do so when there is a proper justification and manifest reason for it; but above all he must abstain from taking the property of others, for men forget more easily the death of their father than the loss of their patrimony.

  Niccolo Machiavelli

  Art, Father, War

  Niccolo Machiavelli (2017). “The Prince”, p.53, Race Point Publishing

• A battle that you win cancels all your mistakes.

  Niccolo Machiavelli

  Peace, War, Mistake

• A prince being thus obliged to know well how to act as a beast must imitate the fox and the lion, for the lion cannot protect himself from snares, and the fox cannot defend himself from wolves.

  Niccolo Machiavelli

  Art, War, Wish

  "The Prince". Book by Niccolò Machiavelli, ch. 17, 1513.

• The reply is, that one ought to be both feared and loved, but as it is difficult for the two to go together, it is much safer to be feared than loved, if one of the two has to be wanting. For it may be said of men in general that they are ungrateful, voluble, dissemblers, anxious to avoid danger, and covetous of gain; as long as you benefit them, they are entirely yours; they offer you their blood, their goods, their life, and their children, as I have before said, when the necessity is remote; but when it approaches, they revolt.

  Niccolo Machiavelli

  Art, Children, War

  "The Prince". Book by Niccolo Machiavelli , Ch. 17, as translated by Luigi Ricci (1903), 1513.

• No enterprise is more likely to succeed than one concealed from the enemy until it is ripe for execution.

  Niccolo Machiavelli

  Business, War, Philosophical

  "The Art of War" by Niccolo Machiavelli, Book 7, as translated by Neal Wood (1965), 1520.

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