The Prince & The Art of War: Two Classic Works of Strategy, Tactics and Politics by One of the Foremost Proponents

Two Masterpieces of tactics and strategy

There have been few men so distinguished that their names have been embraced into the language, but the author of the two works in this special Leonaur edition is a notable and famous example. Everyone who is aware of Niccolo Machiavelli, the Renaissance Florentine founder of political science knows his name is a by-word for the real or 'devil's politics'-the ruthless system employed by most men and institutions of power and the practice of which is-naturally-roundly denied by all of them. Machiavelli was, in fact, a man of many other talents and parts. Poet, songwriter, civil servant, diplomat, playwright and philosopher. He held office in the Florentine Republic whilst the Medicis were out of power and wrote his masterpiece and most famous work, The Prince, on their return to Florence. Today, some 500 years later, Machiavelli's theories remain highly respected and are still studied by military men, politicians and those in business. Machiavelli's The Art of War-politics by other means-makes a fitting companion piece to The Prince in this new edition which will be a valuable addition to any library.
Leonaur editions are newly typeset and are not facsimiles; each title is available in softcover and hardback with dustjacket.

Niccolo Machiavelli was born on 3 May 1469 in Florence during the city-state's peak of greatness under the Medici family. In 1494, the year the Medici were exiled, Machiavelli entered Florentine public service. In 1498 he was appointed Chancellor and Secretary to the Second Chancery. Serving as a diplomat for the republic, Machiavelli was an emissary to some of the most distinguished people of the age. When the Medici were returned to Florence in 1512, Machiavelli was forced into retirement. In the years that followed he devoted himself to literature, producing not only his most famous work, The Prince, but also the Discourses on the First Decade of Titus Livius (First Decade here means First Ten Books), his Art of War and The History of Florence. In 1527 the Medici were once again expelled from Florence, but before Machiavelli was able once again to secure political office in the city he died on 22 June 1527.