Antonio Maria Crespi Castoldi, Portrait of Niccolò Machiavelli, first half of 17th century.
Niccolò Machiavelli has a bad reputation. ‘Everyone hated him because of The Prince,’ a friend observed around the time of his death in 1527, and the suspicion and hatred have barely abated in the 500 years since. However, Machiavelli’s writings are far more sophisticated than selective readings of the more hard-boiled passages of that book would seem to suggest.
Far from being ‘an enemy of the human race’—as an English cardinal once called him—Machiavelli was a perceptive writer whose lessons on leadership, liberty, virtue and good government we might do well to heed today.
This lecture by Ross King, author of Machiavelli: Philosopher of Power, places him in the context of his times and examines his more positive legacy and influence.
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This is an online event hosted on Zoom which can be watched live, or on-demand for three weeks afterwards. You will receive your link to access the event in your email confirmation and the on-demand link after the event ends.