Quotes by Niccolò Machiavelli

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This power easily receives names, but names do not receive power.

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Humans are such by nature that they are equally attached to those whom they have done good and to those who have done them harm.

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Men do not know how to be worthy either in wrongdoing or in good deeds; iniquity presupposes a certain greatness, or is, in some measure, a proof of the breadth of soul which they are unable to attain.

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Men are always bad, so long as they are not drawn to good necessity.

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He who does not know how to duel confuses the experienced duelist.

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When the cunning and wickedness of men reach their limits, the world must be reduced [...] either by pestilence, or by a bad harvest, or by a flood: so that the people who remain in fewer numbers and who have escaped of misfortune to live better and become better.

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And how many wonderful people there are in hell! Will you be ashamed to find yourself among them? Look your fate straight in the face, ward off evil, but if you cannot avoid it, bear your due reward manfully.

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The ancients, who unanimously glorified the sage capable of changing even the motion of the planets, did not refer to the stars, because in the eternal ones change is impossible, but to the sage himself; he is constantly matching his pace with himself.

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You can attract hatred by good deeds as well as by bad deeds.

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Good advice, whoever gives it, comes from wisdom of principle, but wisdom of principle does not come from good advice.

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People who have become accustomed to a certain way of life do not like to change, especially if they have not come face to face with evil.

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You may, I think, consider it true that fate disposes of half of our deeds, but leave the other half to ourselves.

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The monks... because of them, we Italians have run out of religion and sunk into vices.

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Man cannot force himself to turn back from a path on which, until recently, he prospered.

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Although the new rules change people's consciousness, an attempt must be made that, in their modified state, the rules retain as much as possible of the old ones.

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Hope is good, but the strongest defense is the one that depends on you and your courage.

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Fortune represents the still unknown but natural laws of time and history, but which can be known and, in this way, subject to man.

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The distance between how people live and how they ought to live is so great that the one who rejects reality for the sake of what falls is acting to his detriment rather than for his own good, since, wishing to practice good in all situations of life, he will you inevitably perish, clashing with a majority of people to whom the good is a stranger.

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You must not tolerate disorder to avoid war, because you cannot escape war, and in it you will lose your superiority.

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It is not worth relying on the idea that a flawless decision can be made, but, on the contrary, you have to come to terms with the idea that every decision is doubtful, because that is the nature of things, namely that, avoiding a unpleasantness, you fall into another; but this is exactly what wisdom consists in, namely, in weighing the possible inconveniences and counting the least evil as good.

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You must not give advice to anyone, nor use anyone else's advice, except the universal counsel: the rule of each consists in obeying the command of the soul and in the brave deed.

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We must once and for all reject the idea that the affairs of the world are directed by God and fate, and that men, with their minds, cannot change anything about it.

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Always, the enemy demands that you step aside, while the friend openly demands that you step forward for him with weapon in hand. Indecisive principles usually choose not to intervene to avoid immediate danger, and this usually leads to their downfall.

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All things in the world, of all times, are the same since ancient times. And this, because they are made by people driven by the same passions that have the same consequences. And this makes it easier to know the future through the mediation of the past.

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War is the only duty that the prince cannot delegate to someone else.

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Most people are content with their lives as long as you don't touch their honor or property.

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People, for the most part, judge by what they see, for all are given to see, but only a few are given to touch. Everyone knows what you look like, but only a few know what you are like in reality, and the latter will not dare to contradict the opinion of the majority behind which the state stands.

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Procrastination can lead to anything, because time brings with it both bad and good, both good and bad.

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It is a common human error not to expect a storm in a calm sea.

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People should be harmed in such a way that there is no fear of revenge.

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Some people are better at not making mistakes than making amends.

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No empire can be safe without its own weapons, and it can only rely on its good fortune to escape from trouble.

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The most useful fortress (...) is if the people love it.

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A city accustomed to freedom is more easily controlled by its own citizens than by any other means.

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A person should be passionate rather than cautious, because luck is like a woman, you only keep it under control if you beat it.

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The fight cannot be postponed, it can only be delayed in favor of your enemy.

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People are so stupid, and they only live for today, that anyone who wants to deceive them will always find their man among them.

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When people receive good from where they expected bad, they are more willing to commit themselves to their benefactor.

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Every course of action is risky, so precaution does not lie in avoiding danger (which is impossible), but in calculating the risk and acting decisively.

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The strong is not the one who doesn't fall, but the one who can always stand up.

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The only real way to paradise is through hell.

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It should be noted that such an end, which usually results from the determination of a determined person, cannot be avoided by the princes, because anyone who is not afraid of death himself can attack them.

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Everyone sees how you show yourself, and only a few understand what you really are.

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It usually happens that a person who wants to be good to everyone ends up being ruined by bad people.

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The more grains of sand that have fallen off the hourglass of our life, the more clearly we can see through it.

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People attack someone who has endeared himself to them rather than someone they fear; for love is an agreement which men, out of malice, and whenever their interest requires it, consider void; and fear is kept awake by the dread of punishment.

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People avenge minor wrongs because they don't know about serious ones.

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A wise man does first what a fool does last.