Chapter Info (Click Here)
Book No. – 4 (Political Science)
Book Name – Western Political Thought (Shefali Jha)
What’s Inside the Chapter? (After Subscription)
1. THE REPUBLICAN CITY-STATES OF ITALY
2. THE INTELLECTUAL CONTEXT
2.1. PRINCELY VIRTU AND FORTUNA
2.2. CIVIC VIRTU AND LIBERTY
2.3. CIVIC VIRTU AND RELIGION
3. PROBLEMS WITH MACHIAVELLI’S POLITICAL THEORY
Note: The first chapter of every book is free.
Access this chapter with any subscription below:
- Half Yearly Plan (All Subject)
- Annual Plan (All Subject)
- Political Science (Single Subject)
- CUET PG + Political Science
LANGUAGE
Machiavelli (1469–1527): Humanism and Republicanism
Chapter – 5
Table of Contents
THE REPUBLICAN CITY-STATES OF ITALY
- In popular imagination, alongside the landed estates of the countryside, the vibrant city-states of late medieval Italy(such as Milan, Venice, Florence, Genoa, etc.) are also highlighted.
- These city-states emerged by the end of the first millennium, fiercely protecting their independence from both the Holy Roman Emperor and the Roman Catholic Church.
- By the end of the 12th century, most Italian city-states were governed by a podesta, an official selected or elected by the people for a six-month term, ruling with the help of the People’s Council.
- The podesta system was characterized by a republican government, with the podesta being seen as a public servantwith no higher status than others in the council.
- These city-republics resisted external control and questioned internal absolutism, where power might be concentrated in a prince.
- Surrounding the city-republics were the kingdoms of Naples and the papacy, and nearby were powerful monarchies like France, Spain, and England.
- By the mid-14th century, the podestas were replaced by the signori, or executive boards, shifting governance toward a more authoritarian system.
- In Florence, the podesta was replaced by the signori in 1393, though some checks on their authority remained.
- In 1434, the Medici family took control, eliminating those checks, leading to a more monarchical style of rule until the republic was re-established in 1494.
- The Consiglio Grande (Great Council), established in 1494, gave the republican regime a more inclusive character, with over 3,000 citizens able to participate in decisions.
- The Great Council allowed non-aristocratic elements to participate in the Signoria and other administrative boards.
- From 1494 to 1498, Savonarola, a Dominican priest, led Florence, criticizing both the Catholic Church and the wealthy Florentines, until he was replaced by Piero Soderini.
- Niccolò Machiavelli (born 1469) came of age as the Medici were overthrown, and at 29, he worked as a bureaucratfor the republic.
- Machiavelli came from an ordinary Florentine family, his father being a lawyer who ensured his education at the University of Florence.
- Machiavelli became secretary to the second chancery, overseeing internal affairs and domestic bureaucracy, while his diplomatic missions took him to France, Spain, and the Vatican.
- When the Medici returned in 1512 and the republic fell, Machiavelli was imprisoned and nearly executed, but was later exiled to his farm.
- During his exile, Machiavelli wrote influential works such as The Prince, Discourses, Art of War, History of Florence, and Discourse on the Reform of the Government of Florence.
- Machiavelli became one of the most famous philosophical historians of Florence, alongside figures like Guicciardiniand Francesco Vettori, though he was aligned with republican values, unlike Guicciardini, who supported the Medici.