WHILST Niccolò Machiavelli’s work is chiefly aimed at those whom he hoped would become the future leaders and commanders of a European principality, Il Principe has since been used to justify all kinds of ideological and behavioural excess. Be it the unbridled greed of the capitalist ruling class on the one hand, or the unwavering inhumanity of Stalinism, Hitlerism and Maoism on the other, Machiavelli’s writings are often used in a manner similar to that of Sun Tzu in The Art of War (fifth century BCE) or the unaccountable Social-Darwinism of Might is Right (1890), by the pseudonymous Ragnar Redbeard.

Machiavellianism, despite its frequent portrayal as an aristocratic notion, is also a highly individualistic philosophy. Indeed, although the overriding message of The Prince is one which rejects democracy and the masses, it makes the fatal mistake of assuming that all forms of power and authority must reside in the hands of man. In other words, a chosen minority are themselves the be-all-and-end-all of Machiavellian doctrine and such individuals are rarely interested in nothing more than using this power and authority to advance their own narrow interests. The ruler’s very position is maintained by lies, deceit and manipulation, becoming a rampant political monster to whom everything must be methodically subjected. This is clearly very different to the way in which Traditional aristocracies functioned in the past and indicates that Machiavellianism is a consequence of the general decline of those same transcendent values.

According to the Italian philosopher, Julius Evola (1898-1974), writing in his Men Among the Ruins, true elitism degenerates in four stages:

[I]n the first stage the elite has a purely spiritual character, embodying what may be generally called ‘divine right’. This elite expresses an ideal of immaterial virility. In the second stage, the elite has the character of warrior nobility; at the third stage we find the advent of oligarchies of a plutocratic and capitalistic nature, such as they arise in democracies; the fourth and last elite is that of the collectivist and revolutionary leaders of the Fourth Estate.

Meanwhile, given that King Frederick II’s vast experience of war and leadership far surpassed that of Machiavelli himself, one often gets the impression that the latter’s work is being marked by a disapproving schoolteacher. The Italian’s theoretical discussion, therefore, despite its obsession with strategy and action, is often found wanting by a man who understood the true meaning of the term praxis.

As with most things in life, it is necessary to strike a balance. In this case, between the fundamentally cut-throat politics of Machiavelli and a desire to do what is best for those who have placed their trust in you as a leader.

As the famous American statesman, John Quincy Adams (1767-1848), once said:

If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more and become more, you are a leader.

* * *

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