Men ought either to be indulged or utterly destroyed, for if you merely offend them they take vengeance, but if you injure them greatly they are unable to retaliate, so that the injury done to a man ought to be such that vengeance cannot be feared.

A battle that you win cancels any other bad action of yours. In the same way, by losing one, all the good things worked by you before become vain.

...people are by nature fickle, and it is easy to persuade them of something, but difficult to keep them persuaded.

Always assume incompetence before looking for conspiracy.

Nothing feeds upon itself as liberality does.

Thus it happens in matters of state; for knowing afar off (which it is only given a prudent man to do) the evils that are brewing, they are easily cured. But when, for want of such knowledge, they are allowed to grow so that everyone can recognize them, there is no longer any remedy to be found.

A prince never lacks legitimate reasons to break his promise.