"The first method for estimating the intelligence of a ruler is to look at the men he has around him."
"A prince must not have any objective nor any thought, nor take up any art, other than the art of war and its ordering and discipline; because it is the only art that pertains to him who commands. And it is of such virtue that not only does it maintain those who were born princes, but many times makes men rise to that rank from private station."
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Source: The Prince ch. 14 (1532) (translation by Angelo M. Codevilla)
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