Cesare Borgia#

Summary#

Machiavelli presents Cesare Borgia as the exemplary new prince throughout The Prince. Borgia acquired his state through his father Pope Alexander VI’s fortune, yet demonstrated extraordinary ability in consolidating power: he crushed opposing factions, built loyal forces, instituted effective governance in the Romagna, and used calculated cruelty to restore order before distancing himself from its excesses. Though ultimately undone by illness at his father’s death, Machiavelli argues that Borgia’s methods deserve imitation by any prince who rises through others’ fortune. Borgia’s calculated shift from auxiliary to mercenary to his own forces illustrates the principle that a prince must master his own arms to secure lasting power.

Mentioned In#

• VII. Concerning New Principalities Which Are Acquired Either by the Arms of Others or by Good Fortune ↖ The Prince
• XIII. Concerning Auxiliaries, Mixed Soldiery, and One’s Own ↖ The Prince
• XVII. Concerning Cruelty and Clemency, and Whether It Is Better to Be Loved Than Feared ↖ The Prince
• XX. Are Fortresses, and Many Other Things to Which Princes Often Resort, Advantageous or Hurtful? ↖ The Prince