constantin's review against another edition
5.0
This is a great all times classic book! But this edition has both languages in it!
It is great being able to read the original text the way it was intended to be written and also have the translation in the same volume. Saves time looking online for references, meaning and other bits.
It is great being able to read the original text the way it was intended to be written and also have the translation in the same volume. Saves time looking online for references, meaning and other bits.
peregrineace's review against another edition
3.0
It took me 4.5 years to finish this one and the translation is almost entirely to blame. The dialogue is so stilted to the modern "ear" that it makes it difficult to maintain the flow of the arguments presented here.
The first half of the book is devoted to infantry arrangements, which in my completely non-professional opinion is much less relevant than the latter half of the book. Much like the more widely read Art of War by Sun Tzu, the discussions on encampment, siege warfare, a Captain's character, and discipline are more readily applicable to broader subjects than just military conduct (although these remain relevant as well). Armchair historians & military theorists could have hours of discussions on how much of the advice given here is still useful to the modern military.
This book would benefit greatly from the inclusion of maps, a brief biography on the military leaders whose names are frequently dropped with no modem context, and an overview of the political situation in Florence & the Italian states at the time Machiavelli wrote. Still useful for those interested in history, warfare, and how politics & war intersect.
The first half of the book is devoted to infantry arrangements, which in my completely non-professional opinion is much less relevant than the latter half of the book. Much like the more widely read Art of War by Sun Tzu, the discussions on encampment, siege warfare, a Captain's character, and discipline are more readily applicable to broader subjects than just military conduct (although these remain relevant as well). Armchair historians & military theorists could have hours of discussions on how much of the advice given here is still useful to the modern military.
This book would benefit greatly from the inclusion of maps, a brief biography on the military leaders whose names are frequently dropped with no modem context, and an overview of the political situation in Florence & the Italian states at the time Machiavelli wrote. Still useful for those interested in history, warfare, and how politics & war intersect.
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