Machiavelli's The Prince: Masterpiece Best Described King Ferdinand II of Aragon

Niccolo Machiavelli's most famous writing is his work "The Prince," which was finished in 1513 and still remains a classic of Western political theory.¹ A former diplomat and political adviser, Machiavelli was sent into exile after the Republic of Florence was overthrown in 1512, and thus he began to write this in hopes of being able to return to service.¹ The work is written in simplicity "and it reflects his passionate desire for the restoration of political stability in Florence."¹ "The Prince" is written about the "need for stability in a prince's domain,"² and how a prince should go about his ruling. Machiavelli refers to many famous leaders in the "The Prince," and an example he uses quite often is King Ferdinand II of Aragon. To fully understand Machiavelli's work and how it relates to King Ferdinand, one must learn more about the king to start.

King Ferdinand II of Aragon was a unique ruler, for the fact that he ruled most of his domain with his wife Queen Isabella. Together this royal tandem endured on one of the most ground-breaking, history making rules in the history of the world. They accomplished things such as funding for Christopher Columbus to discover the New World and uniting their people to create one of the strongest powers of their time. Ferdinand ruled from the year 1479 when he succeeded his father as King of Aragon up until his death in 1516. ³ Those thirty seven years of rule, immortalized King Ferdinand forever, and Machiavelli was the one who brought Ferdinand's rule to fame.

"The Prince" shows Machiavelli's views on, amongst other things, human nature, government, and the powers and attributes a prince should encompass. According to Machiavelli he felt that in order to gain power he must be willing to do anything necessary, inhumane or not, but in the end, most not be hated.² In "The Prince" he subtly makes various points on how to be an effective political leader and they include things like: willingness to imitate great rulers, dedicated to the art of war, seeking advice when it is needed and understanding what must be done, cruel or not, to maintain power.² Machiavelli is a very opinionated political figure whose views on many things are expressed in this great piece of work.

Niccolo Machiavelli is said to have had a pessimistic outlook on human nature, or the view that things can only happen for the worse.⁴ He focused on the way things actually are, instead of the way things should be, and with this approach he believed that even with corruption, stability and security could be attained.⁴ Security and stability, according to Machiavelli, are best maintained through war and ruthlessness.² King Ferdinand II, was not shy about exerting his power of military force and sometimes outright brutality and wisdom throughout Spain and Europe to gain power.

When Ferdinand and Isabella took over military orders, along with their bureaucracy during their reign, their annual revenue reached a height unimaginable before they took rule.⁵ In 1492, Ferdinand flexed his muscles in conquering the Muslim people at Granada and expelling all Jews from his country in order to install unity amongst his people, because along with military conquests, "targeting and prosecuting a known minority is a very accepted move".⁵ This also happened about 450 years later in Germany when Adolf Hitler decided to outcast the Jews. This inhumane act of banning a certain people from their country was not looked at the way Hitler's was, but rather in a greater sense in which led to religious unity and enhanced political centralization.⁵ Going by any means necessary to gain stability in a land, humane or not, was idolized by Machiavelli's views in the thought that the end result constitutes a brutal path.⁶

Machiavelli also wondered onto whether it was better to be a feared or loved leader. In "The Prince," Machiavelli states that: "I don't doubt that every prince would like both; but since it is had to accommodate these qualities, if you have to make a choice, to be feared is much safer than to be loved."¹ Why though? Why would someone rather be feared than loved? Machiavelli answers that question as well saying: "..love is a link of obligation which men, because they are rotten, will break any time they think doing so serves their advantage; but fear involves dread of punishment, from which they can never escape."¹ He also compares great military leaders, the feared Hannibal and loved Scipio, saying that while Hannibal's army consisted of much different people of various ethnicities, they remained loyal, as Scipio's were often rebellious.¹ As for King Ferdinand, he did not necessarily install fear, but for what he did was far greater. Ferdinand kept his subjects busy so that they had no chance to rebel.²

"The Prince" by Niccolo Machiavelli is more widely accepted today than it was in years past. It shows his great political and militaristic views and how a prince should work his people. King Ferdinand II, showed most, if not all qualities Machiavelli stated in his famous work and is widely regarded as one of the most famous and successful kings in the history of the world. Machiavelli's work should well be regarded as one of great value to any kingdom, including a democratic kingdom, such as ours.

1. Kishlansky, Mark A. Sources of the West: Readings in Western Civilization; Sixth Edition Volume I: From the Beginning to 1715. New York: Pearson/ Longman, 2006.

2. "The Prince." Wikipedia. December 6, 2006. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Prince

3. "Ferdinand II of Aragon." Wikipedia. December 7, 2006. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ferdinand_II_of_Aragon

4. Kemerling, Garth. "Machiavelli: Principality and Republic." Encyclopedia Britannica Online. December 7, 2006. http://www.philosophypages.com/hy/3v.htm

5. Chambers, Mortimer; Hanawalt, Barbara; Rabb, Theodore K.; Woloch, Isser; Grew, Raymond; Tiersten, Lisa. Ninth Edition: The Western Experience, Volume I: To the Eighteenth Century. Boston: The McGraw Hill Companies

6. Nardini, Anthony (2006). Changes Recurring in Europe (15^th-16^th Centuries). Retrieved November 15, 2006 from Rowan University.