The Prince, Chapter XI: On ecclesiastical principalities

What it is about:

Chapter XI closes the first part of the work with the special case that suspends all the rules: the ecclesiastical principality. It is acquired by virtù or fortuna but held without either – borne by a legitimacy that needs no ongoing defence. Conventions and principles already introduced: see Chapter 1.

Costoro soli hanno Stati e non gli difendono, hanno sudditi e non gli governano; e gli Stati, per essere indifesi, non sono loro tolti; e li sudditi, per non essere governati, non se ne curano, nè pensano nè possono alienarsi da loro.

These alone have states and do not defend them, have subjects and do not govern them; and the states, though undefended, are not taken from them, and the subjects, though ungoverned, do not mind it, and neither think of nor are able to detach themselves from them.

Il Principe, Chapter XI – Italian original (ed. Italia, 1814); English rendering ours.

Ecclesiastical principalities rest on the old orders of religion, so powerful that they keep their rulers in office however these live and act. These principalities alone, says Machiavelli with barely veiled irony, are secure and happy. The chapter matters because it presents legitimacy as the cheapest of all mechanisms of holding – and at the same time shows how personally accumulated power falls to the institution.

Historical and biographical context

Machiavelli explains the rise of the temporal power of the Church from Alexander VI through Julius II to Leo X. Alexander used Cesare Borgia as an „instrument“ to subjugate the Romagna; what was meant as the house-power of the Borgia fell, after Alexander's death, to the institution. Julius II found a rich, united Church and increased it further.

The point is offhand and sharp: the individually amassed power in the end made not the family great but the Church. That Leo X is in office at the time of writing explains the chapter's diplomatic tone – Machiavelli writes about the power of the house whose favour he seeks.

Principles

Solo adunque questi Principati sono sicuri e felici. Ma essendo quelli retti da cagioni superiori, alle quali la mente umana non aggiugne, lascerò il parlarne.

These principalities alone, then, are secure and happy. But since they are ruled by higher causes that the human mind cannot reach, I shall refrain from speaking of them.

Il Principe, Chapter XI – Italian original (ed. Italia, 1814); English rendering ours.

32nd Principle

M-P-11-1     political · Addressee: organization · Domain: general

Legitimacy rent: positions resting on deeply anchored legitimacy (tradition, a body of belief or of norms) hold without ongoing defensive effort – legitimacy is the cheapest mechanism of holding; where it is lacking, perpetual effort is the price.

Application: Institution-building: investing in standard-setting, certification or recognized arbiter roles arguably lowers defence costs lastingly – legitimacy saves what power otherwise has to spend continuously.

Basis: Chapter XI. Derived.

33rd Principle

M-P-11-2     strategic · Addressee: individual · Domain: general

Structural inheritance: whoever accumulates power within an enduring structure accumulates, in case of doubt, for the structure – when the person falls, the institution inherits, not the line.

Application: Ambitious individuals: personalize one's performance rents contractually and reputationally (client loyalty, portable credentials) – otherwise the organization reaps the build-up.

Basis: Chapter XI (Alexander → the Church). Derived.

Practice today

M-P-11-1 – Legitimacy is the cheapest mechanism of holding there is. Whoever occupies a recognized norm, a standard, an arbiter role need not constantly defend his position anew – it carries itself from the recognition. Where this anchoring is lacking, perpetual effort is the price: power without legitimacy must be paid for afresh every day.

M-P-11-2 – Whoever rises within an enduring structure should know for whom he builds. The reputation accumulated in the group, the firm, the agency falls, in case of doubt, to the institution, not to the person. Whoever wants to keep his own build-up personalizes it early – through portable mandates, his own credentials, transferable bonds.