Skip to content
The PrinceNiccolò Machiavelli

The Prince

by OpenStories

Original author: Niccolò Machiavelli

CompletedPublished Updated

"The Prince" by Niccolò Machiavelli is a political treatise written in 1513 and published in 1532. Presented as an instruction guide for new rulers, this controversial work suggests that immoral acts may be necessary to achieve political power and glory. Written in vernacular Italian rather than Latin, it breaks from traditional advice literature by focusing on practical effectiveness over abstract ideals. Its worldview challenged dominant Catholic doctrines of the time, making "Machiavellian" synonymous with political cunning and contributing to modern negative connotations of politics itself.

The Prince, by Niccolò Machiavelli. Republished by OpenStories from Project Gutenberg eBook #1232.

  • 49,441words
  • 29chapters
  • 0stars
  • 0bookmarks
  • 3hits
Start reading

29 Chapters

  1. 1.Front Matter406 words
  2. 2.Introduction4,287 words
  3. 3.Chapter I128 words
  4. 4.Chapter II: Concerning Hereditary Principalities249 words
  5. 5.Chapter III: Concerning Mixed Principalities3,076 words
  6. 6.Chapter IV954 words
  7. 7.Chapter V452 words
  8. 8.Chapter VI1,201 words
  9. 9.Chapter VII2,730 words
  10. 10.Chapter VIII: Concerning Those Who Have Obtained a Principality by Wickedness1,532 words
  11. 11.Chapter IX: Concerning a CIVIL Principality1,294 words
  12. 12.Chapter X712 words
  13. 13.Chapter XI: Concerning Ecclesiastical Principalities876 words
  14. 14.Chapter XII: How Many Kinds of Soldiery There Are, and Concerning Mercenaries1,961 words
  15. 15.Chapter XIII: Concerning Auxiliaries, Mixed Soldiery, and One’s Own1,369 words
  1. 16.Chapter XIV: That Which Concerns a Prince on the Subject of the Art of War872 words
  2. 17.Chapter XV516 words
  3. 18.Chapter XVI: Concerning Liberality and Meanness800 words
  4. 19.Chapter XVII1,077 words
  5. 20.Chapter XVIII: 11,260 words
  6. 21.Chapter XIX: That One Should Avoid Being Despised and Hated3,553 words
  7. 22.Chapter XX1,592 words
  8. 23.Chapter XXI: How a Prince Should Conduct Himself So as to Gain Renown1,465 words
  9. 24.Chapter XXII: Concerning the Secretaries of Princes448 words
  10. 25.Chapter XXIII: How Flatterers Should Be Avoided723 words
  11. 26.Chapter XXIV: Why the Princes of Italy Have Lost Their States521 words
  12. 27.Chapter XXV: What Fortune Can Effect in Human Affairs and How to Withstand Her1,167 words
  13. 28.Chapter XXVI: An Exhortation to Liberate Italy From the Barbarians (1)8,703 words
  14. 29.Chapter XXVI: An Exhortation to Liberate Italy From the Barbarians (2)5,517 words