Machiavelli Quotes

The wish to acquire more is truly very natural and common, and men always do so when they can

There is nothing more important than appearing to be religious

A government which does not trust its citizens cannot be trusted by them

Never was anything great achieved without danger

Men in general judge more from appearances than from reality. All men have eyes, but few have the gift of penetration

The world is made by those who act, not by those who think

A prudent man should always follow in the path trodden by great men and imitate those who are most excellent

Whoever desires to found a state and give it laws, must start with assuming that all men are bad and ever ready to display their vicious nature, whenever they may find occasion for it

Men are so simple and so much inclined to obey immediate needs that a deceiver will never lack victims for his deceptions

The first way to lose your state is to neglect the art of war

The memory of benefits is slight, but the memory of injuries is tenacious

No enterprise is more likely to succeed than one concealed from the enemy until it is ripe for execution

It ought to be remembered that there is nothing more difficult to take in hand, more perilous to conduct, or more uncertain in its success, than to take the lead in the introduction of a new order of things

It is a common error to believe that men will be grateful for benefits received

A wise ruler ought never to keep faith when by doing so it would be against his interests

The promise given was a necessity of the past; the word broken is a necessity of the present

Princes and governments are far more dangerous than other elements within society

Men sooner forget the death of their father than the loss of their patrimony

Benefits should be conferred gradually; and in that way they will taste better

Any man who tries to be good all the time is bound to come to ruin among the great number who are not good

He who neglects what is done for what ought to be done, sooner effects his ruin than his preservation

It is much more secure to be feared than to be loved when one of the two must be lacking

The chief foundations of all states, whether new, old, or mixed, are good laws and good arms

He who wishes to be obeyed must know how to command.

It is a very natural and ordinary thing to desire to acquire, and always, when men do it who can, they will be praised or not blamed; but when they are not able and wish to do so by force, then there is blame and the error

One change always leaves the way open for the establishment of others

The wise man does at once what the fool does at last

He who is the cause of another’s advancement is himself undone

Men are driven by two principal impulses, either by love or by fear

Where the willingness is great, the difficulties cannot be great

Fortune is the arbiter of one half of our actions, but she still leaves us to direct the other half

The wise man does at once what the fool does at last

The vulgar crowd always is taken by appearances, and the world consists chiefly of the vulgar

Hatred is gained as much by good works as by evil

Where there is a great desire, there can be no great difficulty

Whoever wishes to foresee the future must consult the past; for human events ever resemble those of preceding times

The wise man does at once what the fool does finally

The great majority of mankind are satisfied with appearances, as though they were realities

The general opinion is that a free government is more conducive to the growth of cities than a tyrannical one

In judging policies we should consider the results that have been achieved through them rather than the means by which they have been executed

Yet it is not titles that honor men, but men that honor titles

It is better to be feared than loved, if you cannot be both.

There is nothing wastes so rapidly as generosity, for even while you exercise it you lose the power to do so, and so become either poor or despised, or else in order to escape poverty, rapacious and hated

The wise man does at once what the fool does at last

I'm not interested in preserving the status quo; I want to overthrow it

The wise man adapts himself to circumstances, as water shapes itself to the vessel that contains it

It is not titles that honor men, but men that honor titles

Wars begin when you will, but they do not end when you please

States and empires that depend on their own arms have the greatest likelihood of success and defense

There never was a man remarkable either for good or evil fortune whose return to the path of common life has not been attended with contempt

There is no avoiding war; it can only be postponed to the advantage of others.

The desire to acquire is in truth very natural and common, and men always do so when they can; and for this they will be praised not blamed, but when they cannot and wish to do so by force, then there is blame and error

It is not reputations that make men great, but the men who make reputations great

Men offend either from fear or hatred

The promise given was a necessity of the past; the word broken is a necessity of the present

To understand the nature of the people it needs to be a prince, and to understand that of princes it needs to be of the people

There is no surer way of keeping possession than by devastation

Fortune is a woman and if you wish to keep her under, it is necessary to beat and ill-use her

The wise man does at once what the fool does at last

It is essential to understand this: that a prince cannot observe all those things for which men are esteemed, being often forced, in order to maintain the state, to act against faith, against charity, against humanity, and against religion

Men judge generally more by the eye than by the hand, for everyone can see and few can feel.

The lion cannot protect himself from traps, and the fox cannot defend himself from wolves. One must therefore be a fox to recognize traps, and a lion to frighten wolves

It is a common fault not to anticipate coming misfortunes; while things go well men do not perceive that they can change

There are three kinds of intelligence: one understands things for oneself, the second discerns what others can understand, the third understands neither for oneself nor through others. The first is excellent, the second good, and the third useless

The wise man does everything at once, the fool nothing at all

There is no avoiding war; it can only be postponed to the advantage of others

Everyone sees what you appear to be, few experience what you really are

Tardiness often robs us opportunity, and the dispatch of our forces

There is nothing more important than appearing to be religious

Never attempt to win by force what can be won by deception

How perilous it is to rely on mercenaries and auxiliaries, for they are disunited, ambitious, and without discipline, unfaithful; brave among friends, among enemies cowardly

It is necessary for a prince wishing to hold his own to know how to do wrong, and to make use of it or not according to necessity

It is not gold, nor silver, but virtue that a prince must seek to possess

There is nothing more difficult to carry out, nor more doubtful of success, nor more dangerous to handle, than to initiate a new order of things

The vulgar crowd always is taken by appearances, and the world consists chiefly of the vulgar

It is not titles that honor men, but men that honor titles

The wise man does everything at once, the fool nothing at all

Thus it happens in all things concerning which a decision must be made, that where there is room for doubt, the wrong decision is almost always taken

He who becomes a prince through the favour of the people ought to keep them friendly

A prince who is not himself wise cannot be wisely advised

He who builds on the people builds on the mud

It is double pleasure to deceive the deceiver

Tardiness often robs us opportunity, and the dispatch of our forces

I conclude, therefore, that fortune being changeful and mankind steadfast in their ways, so long as the two are in agreement men are successful, but unsuccessful when they fall out

The ends justify the means.

One ought not to quit good customs for evil ones, except for the sake of life or for extraordinary benefit

It must be considered that there is nothing more difficult to carry out, nor more doubtful of success, nor more dangerous to handle, than to initiate a new order of things

It is double pleasure to deceive the deceiver

Men rise from one ambition to another: first, they seek to secure themselves against attack, and then they attack others

The more sand has escaped from the hourglass of our life, the clearer we should see through it

The wise man does at once what the fool does at last

The main foundations of every state, new states as well as ancient or composite ones, are good laws and good arms

People should be either caressed or crushed, because they can get revenge for small injuries but not for grievous ones

Many have imagined republics and principalities that never existed at all

He who wishes to be obeyed must know how to command

The wise man does everything at once, the fool does nothing at last; the prudent man does things at the right time

Men offend because they are afraid or because they hate

Men sooner forget the death of their father than the loss of their patrimony

The lion cannot protect himself from traps, and the fox cannot defend himself from wolves. One must therefore be a fox to recognize traps, and a lion to frighten wolves

It is much safer to be feared than loved, when, of the two, either must be dispensed with

The wise man does at once what the fool does at last

The wise man does at once what the fool does at last

Men never do good unless necessity drives them to it; but when they are free to choose and can do just as they please, confusion and disorder become everywhere prevalent

Where the willingness is great, the difficulties cannot be great

Armies cannot be maintained without money, and money cannot be provided without taxes

There never was a new prince who disarmed his subjects

The times are more powerful than our brains

The reason is that men, grasping at immediate gain, are blind to the consequences of their actions

The nature of people is such that they quickly become fond of benefits or the illusion of them

It is not titles that honor men, but men that honor titles

Whoever conquers a free town and does not demolish it commits a great error and may expect to be ruined by it

The nature of peoples is variable, and whilst it is easy to persuade them, it is difficult to fix them in that persuasion

He who causes another to become powerful ruins himself

It is much more difficult to find men who will volunteer to die, than to find those who are willing to endure pain with patience

One who deceives will always find those who allow themselves to be deceived

Whosoever desires constant success must change his conduct with the times

Many have imagined republics and principalities that never existed at all

The first method for estimating the intelligence of a ruler is to look at the men he has around him

One who deceives will always find those who allow themselves to be deceived

Without an opportunity, their abilities would have been wasted, and without their abilities, the opportunity would have been in vain