Allison Porter

Matt Nicol

Western Civilization I

19 November 2021

The Prince Paper

The Prince is a book written by an Italian politician named Nicolo Machiavelli. After

being exiled from Florence while the Medici family returned to power, Machiavelli wrote this

guide in order to win back the favor of the Medici family, and also to return to his love of

politics within the city (Machiavelli). Through his guide, Machiavelli explains leadership tactics

that he personally believed every successful ruler should follow. Although the book was written

during the sixteenth century, thousands of world leaders throughout history have continued to

consult this book during their reign. Queen Elizabeth I is one of these leaders who may have

sought advice from Machiavelli’s guide. During this time, however, the Catholic Church had

placed The Prince on the index of Prohibited Books. Although historians are not positive that

Elizabeth had ever read The Prince, she did show some characteristics during her rule that

Machiavelli would have supported. Throughout her reign, Queen Elizabeth I did follow the

guidelines of Machiavelli such as being both feared and loved, having intelligence, as well as

warfare tactics.

According to Machavelli, one of the most important characteristics of a good leader is to

be both feared and loved by their people, but he does state that, “it is much safer to be feared

than loved” (Machiavelli). However, it seems that Queen Elizabeth I was able to create a good

balance between the two. “Whenever possible, she transformed the language of politics into the
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language of love, likening herself to the spouse or the mother of her kingdom” (Morrill).

Elizabeth felt not only that she ran the kingdom, but that she had to care and provide for the

people within it as well. In 1601, during her famous “Golden Speech”, she says, “I do assure

you, there is no prince that loveth his subjects better, or whose love can countervail our love.

There is no jewel, be it of never so rich a price, which I set before this jewel; I mean, your love:

for I do more esteem of it, than of any treasure or riches” (Morrill). Queen Elizabeth clearly

valued and held her subjects to a high importance, which would allow for the people of the

kingdom to gain trust and support her as their queen. “Nevertheless a prince ought to inspire fear

in such a way that, if he does not win love, he avoids hatred; because he can endure very well

being feared whilst he is not hated” (Machiavelli). While Queen Elizabeth was not necessarily

feared in a frightening way, she was rather feared in a respectable manner. Elizabeth was

described as occasionally showing “displays of intransigence” (Morrill), which means that she

was often stubborn when it came to her beliefs. She stood her ground and did not let others

influence her often, which was possibly a good tactic to avoid revolts or an overthrow.

“Elizabeth could be as ruthless and calculating as any king before her but at the same time she

was vain, sentimental” (Briscoe). Overall, it is clear that the Queen understood that she had to

value the importance of her followers, but also had to set boundaries within the kingdom to

prevent internal issues from arising.

In chapter twenty-three of The Prince, Machiavelli mentions, “that a prince who is not

wise himself will never take good advice, unless by chance he has yielded his affairs entirely to

one person who happens to be a very prudent man. In this case indeed he may be well governed,

but it would not be for long, because such a governor would in a short time take away his state

from him” (Machiavelli). In short, Machiavelli believes that intelligence is a very important
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factor that all leaders should value. Not only was Queen Elizabeth I wise when it came to royal

functions, but she was also very intelligent within her schooling. “Katherine Parr, Henry's sixth

wife, took a keen interest in the young Elizabeth and made sure that she was educated to the

highest standards” (Briscoe). From a very young age, Elizabeth was put through prestige

schooling to assure that she gained an education, and although she was part of the royal family,

girls acquiring an education was not a very popular action during this era. Elizabeth was, “taught

the art of public speaking” (Briscoe), which equipped her with the ability to persuade and speak

in a sophisticated manner, which could have influenced the ability to get her way. Queen

Elizabeth was also intelligent when it came to ruling, because it was practically in her blood. In

other words, Elizabeth did not have to learn how to run a country, because her family had

already been doing it for many years. She was, “the daughter of the Tudor king Henry VIII and

his second wife, Anne Boleyn” (Morrill). Therefore, she grew up living a royal life, so she most

likely was familiar with the ins and outs of ruling before she took the throne.

One of the most repetitive topics Nicolo Machiavelli discusses within The Prince is

warfare. “And to make this quite clear I say that I consider those who are able to support

themselves by their own resources who can, either by abundance of men or money, raise a

sufficient army to join battle against any one who comes to attack them” (Machiavelli). He

believes that a successful prince should be able to raise and lead an army of their own people,

without relying on mercenaries or auxiliaries. Machiavelli believes that having a strong army that

is not only able to conquer, but can also be used as protection is an important aspect of

maintaining a successful kingdom. An example of this idea during Elizabeth’s reign is when

England victoriously defeated the Spanish Armada. “In the late 1580s, English raids against

Spanish commerce and Queen Elizabeth I’s support of the Dutch rebels in the Spanish
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Netherlands led King Philip II of Spain to plan the conquest of England” (History.com). After

this problem arose, the Queen realized she must send troops to defeat the Spanish Armada in

order to protect the well-being of England. “Queen Elizabeth’s decisive defeat of the Invincible

Armada made England a world-class power and introduced effective long-range weapons into

naval warfare for the first time, ending the era of boarding and close-quarter fighting”

(History.com). Simply because Elizabeth made the decision to utilize her military rather than

back down in this battle, the results allowed England to become a large military power at this

point in time, which further helped grow and protect the kingdom as a whole. Machiavelli would

have most likely supported Elizabeth in this important choice as well.

Not only was Queen Elizabeth I a very progressive ruler for her time, but it is safe to say

that she was able to control her territory very well. She was stubborn, but also reasonable when it

came to protecting the well-being of her people and kingdom. As Nicolo Machiavelli suggested

in his book, Queen Elizabeth was able to balance both fear and love in a respectable way among

her subjects, she used her intelligence to her advantage, and she was not afraid to back down

from a battle. Although not an extremist, it is reasonable to suggest that Queen Elizabeth I fit and

followed many guidelines of a Machiavellian ruler throughout her reign.

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Bibliography

- Briscoe, Alexandra. “History - Elizabeth I: An Overview.” BBC, BBC, 17 Feb. 2011,

https://www.bbc.co.uk/history/british/tudors/elizabeth_i_01.shtml#two.

- Machiavelli, Nicolo. “The Prince.” The Project Gutenberg EBook of The Prince, by

Nicolo Machiavelli, https://www.gutenberg.org/files/1232/1232-h/1232-h.htm#chap22.

- Morrill, John S. “Religious Questions and the Fate of Mary, Queen of Scots.”

Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.,

https://www.britannica.com/biography/Elizabeth-I/Religious-questions-and-the-fate-of-

Mary-Queen-of-Scots.

- “Spanish Armada Defeated.” History.com, A&E Television Networks, 9 Feb. 2010,

https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/spanish-armada-defeated.