The Prince | Chapters 12-14 Summary
Chapters 12-14
In this section, Machiavelli discusses ways for a political leader to organize his military—the most important function of a ruler. First, he examines the use of mercenary soldiers—men who are hired to fight, usually from a different country—and explores the problems with this method. For instance, he contends that history shows that mercenaries are motivated only by money; therefore, if there is a disruption in payment, the mercenaries will not fight. Also, soldiers from other countries might lack the nationalistic fervor to fight hard for...
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