Niccolò Machiavelli’s History of Florence traces the affairs of the great Italian city and of Italy from the earliest times to the death of Lorenzo the Magnificent. Commissioned by the Medici, Machiavelli surveys the rise of the republics, the feuds of Guelfs and Ghibellines, the intrigues of popes and princes, and the factional strife that shaped medieval and Renaissance Florence. With his characteristic political acuity, he draws lessons about power, faction, and the fortunes of states.
More than a chronicle, the work is a penetrating analysis of Italian politics by the author of The Prince, blending narrative with shrewd reflection on the causes of conflict and the behaviour of rulers. It illuminates the turbulent transition from the medieval communes to the age of the Medici. Readers of Renaissance history and political thought will find it essential.