Discourses on Livy

The Discourses on Livy (Italian: Discorsi sopra la prima deca di Tito Livio, lit. 'Discourses on the First Ten of Titus Livy') is a work of political history and philosophy written in the early 16th century (c. 1517) by the Italian writer and political theorist Niccolò Machiavelli, best known as the author of The Prince. The Discourses were published posthumously with papal privilege in 1531.

The title identifies the work's subject as the first ten books of Livy's History of Rome, also known as Ab urbe condita, which relate the expansion of Rome through the end of the Third Samnite War in 293 BC, although Machiavelli discusses what can be learned from many other eras including contemporary politics. Machiavelli saw history in general as a way to learn useful lessons from the past for the present, and also as a type of analysis which could be built upon, as long as each generation did not forget the works of the past.

Machiavelli frequently describes Romans and other ancient peoples as superior models for his contemporaries, but he also describes political greatness as something which comes and goes amongst peoples, in cycles.

Outline

Discourses on Livy comprises a dedication letter and three books with a total of 142 numbered chapters. The first two books, but not the third, are introduced by unnumbered prefaces. Much attention has been given to the fact that Livy's History also contained 142 books along with an introduction, as well as to other numerological curiosities present in Machiavelli's writings. At the end of chapter one of Book I, Machiavelli outlines the structure of his work. In Livy's History, Machiavelli observes that Rome's actions are divided into two dichotomies: those taken through public counsel or private counsel, and those occurring either inside or outside the city.