 There are three kinds of intelligence: one kind understands things for itself, the other appreciates what others can understand, the third understands neither for itself nor through others. This first kind is excellent, the second good, and the third kind useless. |
| Men shrink less from offending one who inspires love than one who inspires fear. |
| War is just when it is necessary; arms are permissible when there is no hope except in arms. |
| Severities should be dealt out all at once, so that their suddenness may give less offense; benefits ought to be handed ought drop by drop, so that they may be relished the more. |
| We cannot attribute to fortune or virtue that which is achieved without either. |
| War should be the only study of a prince. He should consider peace only as a breathing-time, which gives him leisure to contrive, and furnishes as ability to execute, military plans. |
| There is no avoiding war; it can only be postponed to the advantage of others. |
| It is necessary for him who lays out a state and arranges laws for it to presuppose that all men are evil and that they are always going to act according to the wickedness of their spirits whenever they have free scope. |
| Men ought either to be indulged or utterly destroyed, for if you merely offend them they take vengeance, but if you injure them greatly they are unable to retaliate, so that the injury done to a man ought to be such that vengeance cannot be feared. |
| The wish to acquire more is admittedly a very natural and common thing; and when men succeed in this they are always praised rather than condemned. But when they lack the ability to do so and yet want to acquire more at all costs, they deserve condemnation for their mistakes. |
| There is no surer sign of decay in a country than to see the rites of religion held in contempt. |
| The more sand has escaped from the hourglass of our life, the clearer we should see through it. |
| Of mankind we may say in general they are fickle, hypocritical, and greedy of gain. |
| Hence it comes about that all armed Prophets have been victorious, and all unarmed Prophets have been destroyed. |
| It is better to be feared than loved, if you cannot be both. |
| For among other evils caused by being disarmed, it renders you contemptible; which is one of those disgraceful things which a prince must guard against. |
| Hatred is gained as much by good works as by evil. |
| Before all else, be armed. |
