The essential writings of Machiavelli (31 page)

BOOK III
CHAPTER ONE
O
N THE NEED TO KEEP BRINGING A SECT
¹⁹³
OR A STATE BACK TO ITS ORIGINS IF IT IS TO ENDURE

It is too true that all the things of this world have an end, but those things that manage to pass through the entire cycle that Heaven has ordained for them do so only because they do not let themselves fall into disarray, but maintain themselves in an ordered fashion. They do not let their system change, or if they do, it is a change that benefits rather than harms them. Here I am talking about mixed bodies, such as states or sects, and I propose that changes that restore them to their origins are to their benefit. Accordingly, the sects and states that are best organized and have the longest life are those which can keep renewing themselves through their institutions, or by some event from outside. It is quite clear that if they do not renew themselves they will not endure.

The way to renew these bodies is, as I have said, to take them back toward their origins, because the origins of all sects, republics, and kingdoms inevitably have some good through which they can reclaim their initial worth and growth. As time passes, this original goodness becomes corrupted, and if something does not intervene to restore the body to its roots, the corruption will inevitably kill it. As the doctors of medicine say: “Every day the body absorbs something that will sooner or later require a cure.”
¹⁹⁴

This restoration to origins, when speaking of states, is done either by extrinsic events or intrinsic foresight. As for extrinsic events, it was clearly necessary for Rome to be taken by the Gauls
¹⁹⁵
in order for it to be reborn, and once reborn it gathered new life and strength and again embraced religion and justice, which had begun to be corrupted. This is quite clear in Livy’s
Histories
, in which he shows how, in sending the army out against the Gauls and in creating tribunes with consular power, the Romans no longer observed religious ceremony
¹⁹⁶
Similarly, the Romans not only did not punish the three Fabii who had fought against the Gauls in a way that was
contra ius gentium
, but in fact made them tribunes.
¹⁹⁷
It is easy to assume that the Romans had begun to turn away from the sound laws created by Romulus and other judicious rulers after him, laws that were reasonable and necessary to preserve a free way of life. Then came the shock from outside when the Gauls occupied Rome, with the result that all the institutions of the state were subsequently renewed. The people of Rome realized that it was not only necessary to maintain religion and justice, but also to hold its good legislators in esteem. The people saw that it was important to place more value on the skill of these legislators than on any conveniences they might be deprived of because of the policies of these legislators. This is precisely what happened. The instant the Romans reclaimed Rome from the Gauls, they renewed all the institutions of their old religion, punished the Fabii who had fought
contra ius gentium
, and valued the skill and goodness of Camillus so highly that the Senate and everyone else set aside their jealousies and placed the heavy burden of government entirely in his hands.
¹⁹⁸

Hence it is necessary, as I have already said, for members of any kind of body to examine themselves frequently, whether instigated by eternal or internal events. If by internal events, it is best when these arise either institutionally, which will often make members of the body reexamine matters, or by a good man who, through his example and good works, produces the same effect.

Consequently, this benefit comes about in a state through the skill either of a man or of an institution. As for the latter, the institutions that drew the Roman Republic back toward its origins were the tribunes of the plebeians and the censors, together with all the laws instituted against men’s ruthless ambition and insolence. These institutions must be given life through the skill of a single citizen who bravely sets out to enforce them against the power of those who will not comply. In the era before Rome was seized by the Gauls, there were notable incidents of such enforcement, such as the killing of Brutus’s sons, the deaths of the Decemvirs, and the murder of Maelius the Grain-dealer.
¹⁹⁹
In the era after Rome was occupied by the Gauls, there were the deaths of Manlius Capitolanus and of Manlius Torquatus’s son, the attempt of Papirius Cursor to condemn to death Fabius, his master of cavalry, and the charges against the Scipios.
²⁰⁰
Because these incidents were extreme and noteworthy, they recalled men to order. But when these incidents became more rare, they gave men more space in which to become corrupt and behave in ways that were dangerous and resulted in turmoil. These extreme incidents should not occur more than ten years apart, because with the passing of time men begin to be careless with their customs and to break the law; if nothing occurs to remind them of the punishment and to rekindle fear in their hearts, there will be so many offenders that they can no longer be punished without danger.

The Medici, who ruled Florence between 1434 and 1494, always said that they had to retake power every five years, otherwise it was difficult to maintain. What they meant by “retaking power” was instilling in their subjects the kind of fear and terror that the populace had experienced when the Medici first seized power, crushing those who, in their view, had opposed them. When the memory of such terror fades, men speak out, becoming bold and striving for change.

So it is necessary to make provision to take the state back toward its origins. This can also be achieved by the skill of a single man who is not vulnerable to any law that involves punishment. But this man must be of such standing, and so exemplary, that good men will want to imitate him and bad men will be ashamed of leading a contrary way of life. Horatius Codes, Scaevola, Fabricius, the two Dexii, Regulus Atilius,
²⁰¹
and a few others were Romans of exceptional quality, who by their rare and valiant example had an effect on the state that was almost as powerful as that of the laws and institutions. Had these punishments and these exemplary individuals arisen at least every ten years, the inevitable result would have been that Rome would never have become corrupted. But as those punishments and individuals were increasingly few and far between, corruption grew. After Marcus Regulus there were no exemplary individuals, and though Rome had the two Catos, there was such an interval between them and Marcus Regulus, and then between the two Catos themselves, that their example remained isolated and did not have much effect,
²⁰²
especially that of the second Cato, who found Rome so corrupted that he could not set the citizens a good example. These instances should suffice as far as republics are concerned.

As for sects, we can see from the example of our religion that such renewal is necessary. Had our religion not been drawn back toward its origins by Saint Francis and Saint Dominic,
²⁰³
it would have died out. These saintly men, with their poverty and their adherence to the example of Christ’s life, brought our religion back into the minds of men after it had already died out. Their orders were so powerful that they kept the dishonesty of the prelates and religious leaders from destroying our religion. The friars lived in poverty, but were so trusted by the people in the confessional and in their preaching that they managed to convince the people that it was wrong to speak ill of evil men, and right to live in obedience to the Church: If the men of the church committed sins, it was up to God to punish them. As a result of this, the men of the Church can be as evil as they wish, because they do not fear a punishment they cannot see and do not believe in. Thus this renewal, begun by Saint Dominic and Saint Francis, has maintained and continues to maintain our religion in the state it is now in.

Kingdoms also need to renew themselves and take their laws back to their origins. It can be seen what a good effect this had in the Kingdom of France, which lives under laws and institutions more than any other kingdom. Its
parlements
, particularly the
Parlement
of Paris,
²⁰⁴
are the custodians of these laws and institutions, which are renewed by them every time they bring a legal action against a prince of that kingdom or condemn the king in their judgments. Until now these
parlements
have maintained themselves by being determined enforcers of the law against the nobles, but should they ever have allowed a nobleman’s crimes to go unpunished, or such crimes to multiply, they would have ended up having to restore order through great upheaval, and the Kingdom of France would have run the risk of collapsing.

In conclusion, therefore, nothing is more vital in a community—whether it be a sect, a kingdom, or a republic—than to give it the status it had in its origins, and to endeavor that this be achieved by good institutions or good men, so that the return to origins does not have to be effected by an external force. Even though an external force might sometimes be a perfect remedy as the invasion of the Gauls was for Rome, it is so dangerous that it should at all costs be avoided. To demonstrate how the actions of particular men made Rome great and brought about many good results in that city, I shall proceed to a discussion of them, and with this I shall bring this third book and last part of the
Discourses
on Livy to its conclusion. And though the actions of the kings of Rome were great and significant, I shall refrain from discussing them at any length, as history has already done so, and I will mention them only when the kings did something pertaining to their private interests. I shall begin with Brutus, the father of Roman liberty.

193.
Setta
(sect): here in the sense of a political or religious body.

194.
Machiavelli quotes in Latin the aphorism (probably inspired by the teachings of the Greek physician Galen)
Quod quotidie aggregatur aliquid, quod quandoque indiget curatione
.

195.
In 390
BCE
, the Gauls laid siege to Rome, occupying and destroying much of the city before they were finally bought off.

196.
Livy writes (Book V, chapter 38) that the Roman military tribunes had the army march into battle “without giving thought to man or gods, without auspices or sacrificial offerings.”

197.
Latin: “against the law of nations.” In 391
BCE
, Quintus Fabius Ambustus and his two brothers were sent as Roman emissaries to Clusium, which was being besieged by the Gauls. According to Livy, the three brothers violated “the law of nations” by intervening in the battle and fighting on the side of Clusium. Livy writes (Book V, chapter 36): “Contrary to the law of nations, the emissaries took up arms, and the Fates began to drive Rome toward its ruin.” Livy writes that the Gauls demanded that the Fabii be delivered to them, but Rome refused, and instead elected the brothers consular tribunes, upon which the Gauls invaded and sacked Rome.

198.
Marcus Furius Camillus was the legendary Roman general and dictator who had captured Veii. See note 35 to Book I, chapter 8 above. He is also discussed in Book I, chapter 55 above. According to Roman historians, he was again made dictator when the Gauls were sacking Rome, at which point he defeated the Gallic army and recovered Rome’s treasury from the Gauls.

199.
For the killing of the sons of Brutus, see Book I, chapter 16 above, and note 71; also chapter 3 below. The Decemvirs were a legislative commission that was forced to abdicate in 449
BCE
, when it became too tyrannical. The Decemvirs, however, were exiled, not killed (though according to Livy, two subsequently committed suicide). Spurius Maelius (d. 439
BCE
) was a Roman plebeian who bought up a large amount of grain during the famine of 439 and sold it cheaply to the populace. He was then accused of trying to gain popularity to make himself king, and was murdered.

200.
For Manlius Capitolinus, see Book I, chapter 8 above. During the Roman war against the Latins, Consul Titus Manlius Torquatus (thereafter a symbol of Roman sternness) decreed the execution of his son for having disobeyed the order of not engaging in single battle with the enemy. Quintus Fabius Maximus Rullianus had been consul five times, and was dictator in 315. During Lucius Papirius Cursor’s term as dictator, Fabius had been victorious in battle against the Samnites, but his disobeying orders led Papirius Cursor to condemn him to death. On the charges against the Scipios, see Book I, chapter 29 above.

201.
Machiavelli is listing some of the foremost legendary heroes of Rome: In the sixth century
BCE
, Horatius Codes and one other soldier held back the entire Etruscan army at the Sublician bridge by Rome, and Gaius Mucius Scaevola had demonstrated his courage before the Etruscan king by placing his hand in an altar fire until it burned, after which the king withdrew his forces from Rome. In the third century
BCE
, the statesman Gaius Fabricius Luscinus was regarded as a model of incorruptible Roman virtue, and Marcus Atilius Regulus as a model of heroic endurance.