Books like The Prince by Niccolò Machiavelli

The Prince (Il Principe) is a 16th‑century political treatise by Italian diplomat and theorist Niccolò Machiavelli. Written as an instruction guide for new princes and royals, it argues that a ruler’s aims—such as glory and survival—can justify the use of immoral means to achieve those ends. Though circulated in manuscript as early as 1513 under the Latin title De Principatibus, the printed work was not published until 1532, five years after Machiavelli’s death, with the permission of the Medici pope Clement VII. The book broke with tradition by being written in vernacular Italian rather than Latin, following the trend set by earlier Renaissance works such as Dante’s Divine Comedy. Machiavelli’s treatise was widely criticized and controversial from its first appearance, yet it remains a foundational text in political theory and the study of power, leadership, and statecraft.

First publish date: 1959