O Príncipe

Niccolò Machiavelli is considered by many to be the father of modern political thought. Born in Florence on May 3, 1469, he was one of the most important Italian philosophers and politicians of the 15th century. In the mid-1490s, after the expulsion of the Medici family from the government of the region, he became an official in the service of the Florentine Republic. It was in these roles that he carried out diplomatic services and travels, which allowed him to learn about different ways of exercising politics and power. One of the people he admired was Cesare Borgia, the illegitimate son of Pope Alexander VI, an important military and statesman who gained power and fame through force of arms and, above all, cruelty, cunning, and deceit – he was as effective at killing his adversaries as he was at creating alliances, as long as they favored his status. The trajectory of this historical figure is said to have served as Machiavelli's main inspiration for his most famous work, THE PrinceAnd, from 1513. A year earlier, with the return of the Medici to Florence, Machiavelli had lost his political office and fallen into disgrace, having even been imprisoned, tortured, and exiled. With the regaining of his freedom, he dedicated himself to literature, writing several of his most renowned works, such as *The Art of War* (1519-1520) or *History of Florence* (1520-1525). He died on June 22, 1527, in his Florence, shortly after presenting this last book to his patron, Pope Clement VII – the same one who sponsored several masterpieces of history, such as... The Final Judgment, by Michelangelo, or The Transfiguration, by Rafael.