"Rising from humble beginnings as a foundling, Castruccio Castracani came to prominence as one of the most powerful and shrewd warlords in Italy. Indeed, Machiavelli argues, so great was his vigour and charisma that - had he not been prevented by his untimely death - he might have surpassed in fame the great generals of antiquity and brought all the territories of Italy under his sole dominion.

Written in Machiavelli's characteristically lucid and terse style, Life of Castruccio Castracani is not only a key text in understanding the development of the author's ideas on leadership and good statesmanship that would find fuller expression in The Prince, but also a revealing account of the political ferment and fractious factionalism of fourteenth-century Italy.

This edition is accompanied by selected passages from Machiavelli's Florentine Histories and a detailed map with historical notes."

Castruccio Castracani is a short book that tells a larger story… it will show that greatness, as Machiavelli defined it five centuries ago, is made, not born. -- Richard Overy
Machiavelli was a pioneer of political science. He was a republican and a patriot. His prose style was as clear as Julius Caesar’s. He was a literary genius. * The Times *
Machiavelli is a pivotal figure in the history of political thought. His views of human nature, society and government mark a break with medieval philosophy and sixteenth-century political thought based on assumptions about God’s purposes for man. * New Statesman *
We are much beholden to Machiavelli and others, that write what men do, and not what they ought to do. * Francis Bacon *

Niccolò Machiavelli (1469–1527) was a quintessential Renaissance man. Interested in music, poetry and theatre, he was above all a diplomat and a historian. He is most famous for his political treatise The Prince, which has become a cornerstone of modern political philosophy.