I am of the opinion that the main and final cause why the prince pretends to the power of altering the coinage is the profit or gain which he can get from it. De Moneta (1360)
Whenever kingship approaches tyranny it is near its end, for by this it becomes ripe for division, change of dynasty, or total destruction, especially in a temperate climate … where men are habitually, morally and naturally free. De Moneta (1360)