
The term ''Machiavellian'' often connotes political deceit, deviousness, and realpolitik. Even into recent times, some scholars, such as Leo Strauss, have restated the traditional opinion that Machiavelli was a "teacher of evil". Others view the Prince as a manual, teaching would-be tyrants how they should seize and maintain power. Some consider it to be a straightforward description of political reality. Machiavelli's ''Prince'' has been surrounded by controversy since its release. He also notably said that a ruler who is establishing a kingdom or a republic, and is criticized for his deeds, including violence, should be excused when the intention and the result are beneficial to him. He claimed that his experience and reading of history showed him that politics have always been played with deception, treachery, and crime. After his death Machiavelli's name came to evoke unscrupulous acts of the sort he advised most famously in his work, ''The Prince''. He worked as secretary to the Second Chancery of the Republic of Florence from 1498 to 1512, when the Medici were out of power.


His personal correspondence is also important to historians and scholars of Italian correspondence. He wrote comedies, carnival songs, and poetry. For many years he served as a senior official in the Florentine Republic with responsibilities in diplomatic and military affairs.

He has often been called the father of modern political philosophy and political science. He is best known for his political treatise '' The Prince'' (''Il Principe''), written around 1513 but not published until 1532. The introduction by Maurizio Viroli presents Machiavelli's political thought in an original context, whose main purpose was the foundation of states and redemption of peoples, using oratory and rhetoric as his main tools.Niccolò Machiavelli Niccolò di Bernardo dei Machiavelli (, ,, )}} – 21 June 1527), was an Italian diplomat, author, philosopher and historian who lived during the Renaissance.A new translation, the only English translation to be based upon the authoritative Italian text edited by Giorgio Inglese (1996), that isĪccurate, readable, and faithful to Machiavelli's style.This fluent new translation is accompanied by comprehensive notes and an introduction that dispels some of the myths associated with Machiavelli, and considers the true purpose of The Prince. Based upon Machiavelli's first-hand experience as an emissary of the Florentine Republic to the courts of Europe, The Prince analyses the usually violent means by which men seize, retain, and lose political power.
