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The Works of the Famous Nicholas Machiavel, Citizen and Secretary of Florence. Written Originally in Italian, and from thence newly and faithfully Translated into English. The Third Edition, carefully Corrected. London: Printed by T. W. for A. Churchill, R. Bonwick, T. Goodwin, J. Walthoe, M. Wotton, S. Manship, B. Tooke, R. Wilkin, R. Smith, R. Robinson, and T. Ward. 1720, 543 pp, Finely bound in modern & signed binding by R. Carlton Seitz. 12.5 x 8", quarto. Includes: 1. The History of Florence, 2. The Prince, 3. The Original of the Guelf and Ghibiline Factions, 4. The Life of Castruccio Castracani, 5. The Murther of Vitelli, &c. by Duke Valentino, 6. The State of France, 7. The State of Germany, 8. The Discourses on Titus Livius, 9. The Art of War, 10. The Marriage of Belphegor, & 11. Nicholas Machiavel's Letter in Vindication of himself and his Writings. In fair condition. Modern binding very attractive & presentable. Boards are rubbed at edges and leather corners. Tea-staining exhibited on marbled paper deco at bottom of front board. Gilt lettering on leather spine bright and clean. Glue residue exhibited on modern front paste-down. Binder's ink stamp found on bottom corner of modern front end-page (verso). Title page reinforced with fresh paper. Front gutter split at contents page with exposed binding. Previous ownership signature found on title page: T. Holt White. Manuscript writing found on blank side (verso) of title page. Original end-pages are detached from binding, but included & full of manuscript writing by (presumed) T. Holt White. Some light foxing through preliminary pages; some instances of age-staining. Page 543 reinforced with fresh paper & is chipped along edges. Modern binding intact - front gutter split. Please see photos and ask questions, if any, before purchasing. Niccolò di Bernardo dei Machiavelli (1469-1527) was a Florentine diplomat, author, philosopher and historian who lived during the Renaissance. He is best known for his political treatise The Prince (Il Principe), written around 1513 but not published until 1532, five years after his death. He has often been called the father of modern political philosophy and political science. After his death, Machiavelli's name came to evoke unscrupulous acts of the sort he advised most famously in his work, The Prince. He claimed that his experience and reading of history showed him that politics have always been played with deception, treachery and crime. 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. The Prince has been surrounded by controversy since it was first published. Some consider it to be a straightforward description of political reality. Others view it as a manual, teaching would-be tyrants how they should seize and maintain power. While much less well known than The Prince, the Discourses on Livy has been said to have paved the way for modern republicanism. His works were a major influence on Enlightenment authors who revived interest in classical republicanism, such as Jean-Jaques Rousseau and James Harrington. This is a Third Edition - the first being published in 1675. The unnamed translator was Henry Neville (1620-1694), a political and miscellaneous writer and a Republican opponent of Oliver Cromwell, who was much admired by Hobbes for his Plato Redivivus, or a Dialogue Concerning Government (1681). An attractive work containing Machiavelli's most famous works, including The Prince. RAREB1720NUVQ 04/24 - HK1405. Seller Inventory # RAREB1720NUVQ
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