What kind of knowledge does Machiavelli claim to possess? How might it be of help to Lorenzo de Medici, the prince to whom Machiavelli addresses the book?

Question

cbarredo1 · Answer

Machiavelli states that a prince should have military knowledge. 

"...among the causes of evil which being unarmed brings you, it makes you contemptible, which is one of those infamies against which the prince must guard himself.." Pg, 54, Chapter 14 (What might pertain to a prince concerning the military) 

"...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; and conversely one sees that when princes have thought more of delicacies than of arms, they have lost their state." Chapter 14 (What might pertain to a prince concerning the military)