Machiavelli, Niccolo. The Art of War

Naval War College Review, Autumn, 2004 by Carnes Lord

Machiavelli, Niccolo. The Art of War. Edited and translated by Christopher Lynch. Chicago: Univ. of Chicago Press, 2003. 262pp. $25

Machiavelli's classic, if now rarely read, The Art of War was probably the single most popular military treatise in Europe prior to Jomini--Clausewitz was a professed admirer.

At first sight, this book, with its apparent attempt to revive the infantry-centered military organization of the imperial Roman legions, seems hopelessly irrelevant to present concerns. Even within its historical setting (it was originally published in 1521), Machiavelli's work is often dismissed today for its alleged failure to appreciate the social and technological trends--particularly the growing importance of gunpowder--underpinning the "revolution in military affairs" of the sixteenth century. Christopher Lynch makes an excellent case that such interpretations neglect the literary or rhetorical dimension of The Art of War and its relationship to Machiavelli's larger intellectual project. In an extensive introduction, as well as an interpretive essay, Lynch rebuts the criticisms of contemporary scholars, defends Machiavelli's grasp of the military realities of his own day, and reinterprets the intention of the work in relation to Machiavelli's more famous political treatises, The Prince and Discourses on Livy.

Lynch's key point is that Machiavelli was not simply the backward-looking admirer of Rome he is often taken to be but a revolutionary thinker who combined elements of past military and political systems in a novel synthesis. His apparent reliance on Roman models is to be understood fundamentally as a rhetorical device designed to appeal to the prejudices of the humanist-oriented Italian elite of his day. At the military level, Lynch argues that Machiavelli's appreciation of the role of artillery and cavalry has long been underestimated. Machiavelli goes out of his way to call attention to the limitations of the Roman way of warfare, which was evident in their campaigns against the Parthians, who relied exclusively on light mobile cavalry armed with the bow and guerilla-style raiding tactics.

Lynch suggests that what Machiavelli ultimately envisions is a synthesis of Rome or "Europe" and "Asia," a combination of Clausewitzian commitment to the decisive battle and extensive employment of maneuver, deception, and surprise in a manner reminiscent of Sun Tzu.

Whatever view one takes of Lynch's bold and provocative reading of Machiavelli's text, his handling of the translation is exemplary and unlikely to be challenged in the foreseeable future. He makes use of the definitive critical edition of the Italian text published in Rome in 2001, which removes many errors present in older versions. The translation itself is relatively literal, with occasional awkwardness but much enhanced access to the terminology of Machiavelli himself; there is also a very extensive glossary of terms.

CARNES LORD

Naval War College