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From this we learn that a wise prince sees to it that never, in order to attack someone, does he become the ally of a prince more powerful than himself, except when necessity forces him, as I said above. If you win, you are the powerful king's prisoner, and wise princes avoid as much as they can being in other men's power.

— Niccolò Machiavelli

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Power

More quotes by Niccolò Machiavelli

Discipline in war counts more than fury.

The Art of War (1520)

Anyone who studies present and ancient affairs will easily see how in all cities and all peoples there still exist, and have always existed, the same desires and passions.

Discourses on Livy (1517)

Cunning and deceit will every time serve a man better than force to rise from a base condition to great fortune.

Discourses on Livy (1517)

Wars begin when you will, but they do not end when you please.

Florentine Histories (1526)

Fear of evil is greater than the evil itself.

The Mandrake (1524)

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The moment the idea is admitted into society, that property is not as sacred as the law of God, and that there is not a force of law and public justice to protect it, anarchy and tyranny commence.

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There is no governor anywhere; you are all absolutely free. There is no restraint that cannot be escaped.

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When we see a great man desiring power instead of his real goal we soon recognize that he is sick, or more precisely that his attitude to his work is sick.

Martin Buber What is Man? (1938)

Of all tyrannies a tyranny sincerely exercised for the good of its victims may be the most oppressive.

C. S. Lewis God in the Dock (1970)

Attribution

Quote text and notes from Wikiquote: Niccolò Machiavelli (page history), available under CC BY-SA 4.0. Source quality and labels are our own summary of what Wikiquote records.