Machiavelli and The Pisan War: Political Crisis and Cultural Creativity in Renaissance Florence, 1494-1509

On November 9, 1494, the Pisan rebels proclaimed independence from Florence and reclaimed their city without a fight. Their audacious act marked the beginning of a long war between Florence and Pisa that ultimately ended with Pisa’s surrender in June 1509. As Niccolò Machiavelli’s chancery career (1498-1512) almost matches the entire duration of the Pisan War, one may ask about his role in the conflict as the secretary to the Ministry of War, and later, the founder and supervisor of the Florentine militia. Surprisingly, this topic has attracted little to no attention in historiography. Concerning this, one of the main goals of my dissertation is to bring to light Machiavelli’s engagement in the Pisan War and his contribution to bringing down the rebellious city. Additionally, as many events that Machiavelli experienced during the conflict inspired him to reflect on them in his writings, the purpose of this project is to show how the Pisan War affected Machiavelli’s intellectual formation. To achieve those goals, my dissertation draws mainly from Machiavelli’s early official letters and dispatches (Legazioni) and his first political writings. The use of Machiavelli’s post-1512 opere and contemporary Pisan and Florentine chronicles and histories serves to complement the main source material.