The Prince: Chapter 16 Summary & Analysis

To begin his more specific discussion of particular virtues and vices, Machiavelli first turns to generosity and miserliness. While Machiavelli states that it is "splendid" for a prince to have a reputation for generosity, he argues that a prince who is genuinely generous "will come to grief." This is because for a prince to actually earn a reputation for generosity, he must be "ostentatiously lavish" in order to attract the attention of the people. Any prince who spends so lavishly "will soon squander all his resources" and find himself forced "to impose extortionate taxes" on his people. If a prince places excessive financial burdens on his subjects, then the people will come to hate him and resent his poor judgment. Therefore, a prudent prince will "not mind being called a miser." His "parsimony" will eventually be seen as generosity, since it saves the people from the burden of excessive taxation.

Citing several modern examples, Machiavelli argues that "great things have been accomplished only by those who have been held miserly, and the others have met disaster." Pope Julius II used his reputation for generosity in order to win the papacy; however, after his election "he made no effort to maintain this reputation," opting for miserliness in order to finance the Church's wars. Louis XII, the king of France, has also used his parsimony to finance foreign campaigns without excessively taxing his people. Finally, Ferdinand of Aragon's success similarly rests on his miserliness.

Machiavelli asserts, "Miserliness is one of those vices which sustain his [a prince's] rule." In the name of not robbing his subjects and maintaining the ability to defend his state, a ruler's miserliness is in fact a virtue. Nonetheless, Machiavelli adds a caveat: those who are already princes should avoid generosity, while those who "are on the way to becoming" princes should "certainly" maintain "a reputation for generosity." Machiavelli references Julius Caesar, who established his rule over Rome by cultivating a reputation for generosity.

Machiavelli adds another qualification to his general rule: a prince should be "frugal" with regards to his own or his people's property, but he should "indulge his generosity to the full" with regards to the property of foreigners or foes. A prince "who campaigns with his armies, who lives by pillaging …. must be open-handed," or else his soldiers will desert him. Referencing Julius Caesar, Cyrus, and Alexander the Great, Machiavelli permits that rulers may "be more liberal with what does not belong to you or your subjects." In fact, rulers who liberally distribute plundered property may actually increase their standing at home. Above all else, a prince must avoid "being despised and hated," and Machiavelli cautions that generosity typically leads to both outcomes.