desend thēselues at home then to inuade their enemies Countrey But Scipio said that it was more conuenient for the Common-wealth to warre in Carthage then in Italie Furthermore they that consult ere they determine to maintaine warre either at home or abroad ought to consider whether it be profitable for the estate of the Countrey to make war at all For though it lie in the power of men to beginne warre yet cannot they obtain victorie at their pleasure and y t commonly many thinges fall out in warfare which men can neither sée nor imagine and yet the warre it selfe the enemies and the successe shew teach what ought to be doone and for this cause it is said that counsaile is taken in the field And though the matters that concerne warre may be communicated and talked of among many yet they ought to be deliberated vpon but by a fewe for els they would be discouered before they were determined Also they that consult vpon matters touching warre ought to consider whether it be profitable for the Common-wealth that their Generals Souldiers should be strangers or naturall borne Subiects The Carthagineans did not onely take strange Souldiers into their seruice but did also elect strange Captaines as they did in the warres which they waged against the Romans choosing Xantippus a Lacedaemonian to be the Generall of their Armie Many Common-weales after that their Captaines were ouercome they vanquished their enemies by the seruice of strange Captaines as the Chalcedonians did with Brasidas the Sicilians with Gylippus the Asians with Lysander Callicratides and Agathocles Captaines of Lacedaemonia And if it chaunce y t any strange Captains doo tyrannise ouer the Common-weales which they ayde as they of the house of Othoman did that happeneth héerof that they which requested them to helpe them are not able to withstand their forces and to defend themselues against thē The Romans to shunne this inconuenience would not consent that they which came to succour or helpe them should be mightier then themselues 10 Princes ought not to committe the administration of the warre vnto any person whom they haue offended for such a one to reuenge the inturie offered vnto him wold cast away the Armie Marius had after such order compassed Hasdruball a noble Captain of Carthage that he was driuen either to fight with disaduantage or die for hunger but Hasdruball did hold him so cunninglie with certaine parleyes of agréement that he gotte out of his reache and so Marius was frustrated of the occasion which was offered him to ouerthrow his enemie which thing when it was knowne in Rome did redownd to his great discredit both with the Senate and the people and euery one through all the Cittie spake verie much euill of him Within a while after Marius béeing made Consull and going to make warre vpon the enemie Fabius Maximus saide vnto him that before he came to the day appointed for the field he shoulde see what forces the enemies had and that he should not rashlie hazard the Armie and aduenture the libertie of Rome Vnto whō Marius answered that as soone as he came by the enemie hee had fullie determined to encounter with him and béeing asked why he said because he knew that if he ouercame the enemy he should recouer the glorie which he had lost in Spayne and if that his owne Armie were ouerthrowne dispersed and put to flight he shoulde be reuenged of the iniurie which was offered him by that Cittie and those Cittizens which so vnthankfullie had offended him Princes ought also to consider the necesitie which they haue to make warre and to vnderstande what prouision they ought to make against occasion be offered them to make warre that if any strangers goe about to molest them they may defend thēselues by force of Armes and not be vanquished for there is no Prince so great mightie and strong but some or other may set vpon him And as our olde Castilian prouerbe goeth Muchas vezes chicas piedras aballam grandes carreras Little stones oft times we see Way downe the greatest Apple tree And if a Prince be of so little vnderstanding that he must be ruled by that which the Captaines say he is their seruaunt and putteth himselfe into daunger either that the Captaines know not what they doo or that they doo not so faithfully dilligently as they ought 11 Those Princes that determine to make warre ought to imitate the Catholicke King Don Hernando the first of that name King of Castile who as it were standing on hie in his Towre a farre of espied and watched the successe and euent of the wars which the Christian Princes made among thēselues to succour and ayde them that were weakest and not to suffer their power to increase in Italie that pretended to make themselues Lordes ouer it neither did hee enter league with those Princes that were confederated together if he could reape no profit thereby and for this cause he would not wage war with Lewes King of Fraunce when Pope Iulius the Emperour and the Zwitcers warred against him for he thought that he should receiue no profit by weakning the Kingdome of Fraunce with the augmentation of those that did persecute it But when hée saw that the King of Fraunce would increase his estate and inlarge his kingdome by making warre against the kingdome of Naples he entered league with the Emperour and the King of England against the King of Fraunce Finally such Princes as enter league with other Kings ought to consider whether it be better for them to maintaine that peace which they enioy or to wage warres as King Mithridates wrote to King Arsaces and whether the warres be iust and such as thereby they may haue profit and atchiue honour glory and renowne The Romans as Appian reporteth woulde not accept many Subiects that offered themselues vnto thē because they were pore and if could not any way redounde vnto their profit to haue thē vnder their subiection Many other examples precepts rules considerations and instructions coulde I giue and aleage but because I writte of them in my bookes of Militarie discipline I willinglie heere omitte them The fifteenth discourse concerning peace WE haue said that the Counsell of estate is called the Counsell of peace because their principall intent that assemble in that Counsell is to procure that y e people may liue in peace and if they make warre if is to defend themselues from the iniurie of those that trouble molest them And to signifie this the Romans accustomed to were the Millitarie ring on the left hand in which they did beare their shielde and not on y e right hand in which they held their sworde for they thought it more necessarie for a well instituted Common-wealth to defende themselues then to offend others The Spartans demaunded of those that returned from warres whether they had lost theyr shielde for they thought it more not to loose
make warre whereby they shoulde increase theyr enemies forces and weaken their owne Therefore incontinently after that they that are of the counsel of estate haue concluded that it is expedient for the profit of the Common-wealth and safetie of the Prince that warre shoulde be made against the enemie Euery one ought to determine fullie either to ouercome or to die in the enterprise as a Woman of Lacedaemonia saide to her Sonne when she gaue him a Target to goe to warres returne my son either with this Target or els within it 2 Euery Prince that goeth about to make war ought first to consider whether he be able and if he be then whether the profit that is like to ensue be greater thē the harme which may succéede for if the losse should be greater then the commoditie that would be as Augustus Caesar saide as if one should fishe with a golden hooke He ought furthermore dilligentlie earnestly to enquire what forces his enemy hath and whether his own power and strength be sufficient to vanquish the Armie of his enemie and ouerthrow it And if he stand in doubt and can not certainly be informed whether his enemies forces or hys owne be the greater hee ought to thinke that his aduersaries are better prouided and more stronglie garded that he may be the more dilligent and the more carefull in persecuting his enemies and infirming their forces and powers for many Captaines because they respected not their enemies and made no account of them were ouercome and put to flight Furthermore to examine both his enemies forces and his owne he ought to knowe whether of them bothe hath the greater store of money hée or his enemie and howe long the warres are like to continue and howe much money is necessarie to maintaine them In this great care and dilligence must be taken for money as it is commonlie saide is the sinnewe of warre which beginneth and endeth it and for this cause the Counsellers of Princes ought to enquire whence prouision of money may be had and howe they may bring to passe that their enemies shoulde want And howe needefull and necessarie this is wee may manifestlie perceiue by this that many enterprises haue beene giuen ouer for lacke of money to supply the charges of warre as happened to Cleomenes King of Lacedaemonia with Antigonus King of Macedon 3 Princes ought to consider what Captaines they choose for the warres for if the Captaine who is the guide to leade and conduct the Souldiours be not valiant and prudent then must all needes goe to wracke Tullie in his Oration pro lege Manilia setteth downe the perfect patterne of a good and valiant Captaine shewing what quallities a good Captayne ought to be endued withall to become famous of which matter I haue written verie largelie in my Booke of the Office of Captaines and Generals That the warre may in all points haue prosperous and good successe all men knowe howe important and necessarie it is that the Captaines should be hardie valiant couragious and faithfull for nothing can be more hurtfull in warres then fearefull cowardlie faithles and vnskilfull Captaines There ought also great care to be had in the pressing of Souldiours what men be chosen to serue their Prince in warre For the Souldiours be they that must fight and gette the victorie and therefore though the Captaines Generals and all other Officers be neuer so perfectlie adorned and endued with all heroicall vertues if the Souldiours be base and cowardlike fellowes the warres cannot be fortunatelie finished When Iulius Caesar went to fight with Perreyus in Spayne he saide that he went to seeke an Armie without a Generall and when hee went to meete with Pompey he said that hee sought a Generall without an Armie And therfore in the mustering and training vppe of Souldiers great dilligence ought to be taken in examining and enquiring whether those Souldiours that be pressed for the Prince his seruice be faithful or Traytours to their Countrey and Prince whether they be constant or inconstant and variable whether they be newe and fresh-water Souldiours or olde and experienced Souldiours that haue long time beene practised and trained vppe in warres whether they come of their own accord with a willing mind to serue their Prince or be forced thereunto by compulsion and whether they come for the loue they beare theyr Countrey and obedience they owne vnto the Prince or beeing base and rascall fellowes fetcht out of Innes Tiplinghouses and other such like places they come to serue the Prince onelie for paye besides these there are manie other thinges which ought to be carefullie considered in the pressing of Souldiours as I haue written more at large in my Bookes of Militarie discipline Furthermore Princes that determine to sette vpon theyr enemies ought to enquire what Harnes those Souldiers haue that are gathered for seruice in warres For Souldiers that be well weaponed fight with a more valiant mind then they that are vnweaponed and lacke their harnesse And when souldiers are throughly well fenced with Armour of proofe they be the more emboldened to set vpon their enemies to assault Fortresses to vndertake any kind of seruice And many times some kind of weapons are not so good and so apt to obtaine the victorie as others as may be séene by the difference of weapons which the Lacedaemonians Romans and Parthians vsed The Romans often vanquished their enemies not because they were more valiant more strong or couragious then their enemies but by reason of the oddes in fighting with better weapons Therefore Princes ought also to enquire what weapons theyr enemies vse in warre and with what weapons they ought to Arme their owne Souldiers to defend themselues and endomage their enemies And also what places are most fitte and conuenient to assault their enemies and surest for theyr owne safetie 4 They that mean to wage war with any Country ought to knowe what freendes they haue to helpe and assist them especiallie if they haue no Countries Townes or Prouinces in that Land which they meane to inuade And it is very good in such enterprises to haue some one naturall borne man in that Countrey to their freende to be holpen by him and informed of the humors interest pretences conditions and customes of the enemies and whether y e places which they inhabite be plaine or hillie and full of Mountaines and of what thinges the Inhabitants of that Countrey stand in neede of and what things would be most acceptable vnto them to entice them to come to ayde and helpe them and so they shall diminish their enemies forces and augment and increase their own It were very good also to learne whether the people of that Countrey which they meane to assault make much of their King or els hate him for it chaunceth oftentimes that the people rebell against theyr King and take part with the enemies because they hate their King and would willinglie be
he that guideth and helpeth vs in our counsels God saith by the Prophet Esay meaning to punish the people of Israell that they should haue no Counsellers to counsell them When Iudith went about to deliuer the Cittie of Bethulia from the imminent danger in which it was when Olophernes besieged it she said vnto those y t were besieged that they should humbly with praying fasting desire of God that it wold please him to confirme the same which she had resolued and determined Tobias said vnto his Sonne that his counsell was not in the power of men but of God And the Captaine Nehemias saith that God destroyeth the counsell of men and the Prophet Dauid that God ouerthroweth the counsell of the Heathen and reprooueth that which the people imagineth and the counsels of Princes After the same manner as God deuideth the waters so enclineth he the harts of kings to doo the same which he will haue bringeth to naught the counsels of the wicked And because counsels depend vpon the diuine prouidence it is necessarilie required that we should guide and direct them vnto the seruice of God as Tobias counselled his Son because God maintaineth and vpholdeth them that put all their trust in him We ought also not to trust to that litle which we know and vnderstand that we commit not an infinite number of faults falling out of one rigor into another and so at the length into extreame miserie and as the holie Scripture mentioneth till the measure of the Amorites be filled 7 They that consult vpon anie matter must put that counsell in execution which seemeth to be lesse dangerous and to haue fewer inconueniences for it is well néere a thing impossible to be deliuered from all the inconueniences and dangers which hap to fall out in the execution of matters and especiallie in great enterprises And therfore it is commonly said that he that ventureth not neither looseth nor winneth And one danger is saued by the other and after the danger commeth the profit If any man thinke that he can put anie thing which in counsell is concluded in execution without aduenture he shall neuer be able to bring that to passe which he wisheth For it is the propertie of Fortune to crosse not onelie great and heroicall enterprises but also small and particular things They ought not then to linger but straight-waies to put the same which in the counsell is concluded in practise though there be danger in the execution of it if so be that the profit which is to folow the execution be greater then the danger which is incurred in not executing it 8 It is the propertie of wise men to consult vpon all matters which they take in hand with great deliberation and then as Salust saith spéedilie with a proportioned diligence to execute the same which is concluded and not imitate y t which is said of the Maquedana who spake without consideration of the time and place where and with whom she spake Therefore it is conuenient to consider well of euery thing for by how much the more things be déepelie pondered by so much the more profitable are the counsels vnto the Common wealth not onely in matters of peace but also of war And therfore in ancient times past it was wont to be said that the Romaines did ouercome sitting and that counsell is taken on the pillow and that many counsels amend all matters 9 It falleth out very sildome that they which haue determined to doo any thing leaue and giue ouer the dooing of it though the execution thereof be difficult and dangerous and manie because they would not be hindered and kept from putting the same in execution which they purpose to doe wil aske no aduise nor admit any one to counsell them who as they know will not allow that which they will haue For it seemeth vnto them that their minds that should helpe them to execute the same which they pretend saint and they feare that if they should consult with them vpon that which they haue before alreadie determined it would be an occasion to thē not to execute the same which they wish Such men are very hurtful vnto the Common-wealth And if that before they had determined with themselues to folow theyr pretences they had consulted vpon that which they ought to doe they might easily be brought from dooing that which they pretended dashing as the royall Prophet saith the children of Babilon on the stones not suffering naughty and peruerse pretences to grow These be the children of Babilon which the kingly Prophet saith that they ought to be broken on the stone The stone whereon they should be broken is our Redéemer and Lord Jesus Christ by whose fauour and grace all naughtie and wicked imaginations are broken 10 After that the same is begun to be executed which in the counsell was determined the Counsellers must not remember or think of that counsell which they forsooke that the execution of the same be not hindered which is already determined For they must hold that firme and stable which in counsell is agréed vpon and thinke it to be most profitable to the Common-wealth for it is very hurtfull to the execution to thinke that those counsels which they would not folow were better then those which they approoued And indéed it is the propertie of vnfortunate persons as Cornelius Tacitus saith to thinke that that counsell which they folowed not was better and safer then that which they alowed and approoued 11 When the matters which are in counsell are of such condition and qualitie that they may be redressed at all times then may the Counsellers spend much time in deliberating what may be doone for that thing is not said to be doone out of time which may be doone in any time But contrariwise if the matters require hast and a spéedie conclusion then ought the Counsellers to make much of the time and with as great celeritie and spéed as may be conclude and determine For it is very hurtfull to those things which the Counsellers sit vpon to wast time and sit long in consultation when the danger is at hand For whilst the Counsellers are consulting what is to be doone the occasion passeth which was offered to put the same in execution which was determined Titus Liuius saith that in meane space while the Romaines consulted what succor they should send to the Towne Saguntia beeing besieged with Hanibals Armie it might haue béene taken destroied and rased to the ground And in a certaine Cittie in Spaine whilst they were long consulting what super-scription they should write on a Letter which they sent vnto those of whō they asked aide the Cittie was taken by the enemies and spoyled In ancient times past the Image of opportunitie was set vp in many places that men might remember to let no occasion slip which might be
counsell of them that know more than himself doth goe most astray And for this cause said king Salomon My Sonne doo nothing of importance without aduisement so shall it not repent thee after the déed That men might vnderstande how necessary it is vnto a Prince to be counselled of wise men the Poets fained that Iupiter tooke counsel of Prometheus For they that gouerne Common-wealths cannot rule them wel if they take not aduisement with persons that know and vnderstande what is conuenient to be doone for the welfare of the Common-wealth Howe much men ought to esteeme of that which wise men say Aristotle sufficiently sheweth affirming that we ought not to aske account of the sayings of wise men for the eyes of their vnderstanding are cleane pure and cléere by reason of their knowledge and learning and they discerne the truth in euery matter which we cannot sée for as Eustacius saith the Sciences take away the rust from the eyes of the soule the sences and the bodie as Uineger scoureth the rust from the stéele being rubbed til it be cleane and shining Claudius Cottereus makes mention of certain Princes that gouerned their Common-wealths well by the counsell of wise men 3 The third qualitie that a Counseller ought to haue is age that he be of ancient yeeres because olde men haue seene much The Lawes of Statuts say that in tract of time prudence authoritie and experience of all thinges that are to be doone is gotten Aristotle saith boyes are not able and sufficient to giue counsell because their wit and iudgment beginneth to take force and vigour Fredericus Furius will haue that the Counsellers of Princes be not vnder thirtie yeeres of age nor aboue threescore for from the thirtith yeere downwards mens vnderstanding is not yet setled their experience is small their presumption much their heate great their thoughts lostie their naturall weakenes much neither can they keepe due grauitie and besides all this the people trusteth them not but murmureth against them Let them lie at Schooles let them trauaile to see Countries manners and gouernments let them learne tongues let them folow the Campe and haunt the Court let them take paines in learning all such thinges are conuenient to be knowne vnto the Counseller of a Prince Though young men commonly be not endewed with perfect iudgment and for this cause the Law graunteth them the benefite Derestitutione in integrum the Lacedemonians would not admit them to sit in publique counsell neither came they to common places where Courts were kept and the Senators assembled together nor yet were they present in the Congregation of the Elders tyll they were thirtie yeeres old and what euer they had to doo in such assemblies they folowed it by their Freendes and Kinsemen Fredericus Furius denieth not that many yong men haue better iudgment cleerer vnderstanding then many olde men and that the abilitie and wisedome ought more to be regarded then the age As may be seene by Papirius Praetextatus vnto whom being but a youth it was granted that he might were the garment which men of full yeeres did were and was called Praetexta or togapraetexta the Robe which the cheefe Officers and Senators wore And this honor was doone vnto the youth because comming with his Father into the Senate he would not discouer and reueale those matters that he hearde there discussed 4 As touching olde men Fredericus Furius would haue that those which are aboue thréescore yéeres of age should returne home vnto their houses liue in rest quietnes discharge their consciences and thinke how they may die well He wold also haue that the Princes should according to the custome of Rome giue them honors priuiledges preferments preheminences pensions and rents according to euery ones deserts as vnto them that are discharged from publique affaires not admitting them to their counsels For when they be once past the sixtith yere their memory faileth their vnderstanding wauereth their experience turneth into stubbornnes and obstinacie their naturall heate is but little and therefore they let occasions slip béeing offered their thoughts be wearied they cannot trauel and to conclude such men are an impediment and charge to the Court But to returne to the purpose séeing that the vertue and gift of counselling well commeth not from age but from wit iudgment and wisedom that euery one hath we ought not so much to respect the age of men as their abilitie which is knowne by their words and déeds For the words as our Redéemer and Lord Jesus Christ saith represent y t which is in the hart Socrates béeing asked what he thought of a certaine man answered that after he had hearde him speake he would tell his minde of him S. Paule calleth them that speake without iudgment tingling bels When Iohn de Mena would praise Don Aluara de luna high Constable of Castile he sayde Tentalo Tenta lo ex platica alguna Try him try him with some talke or communication and that with great reason For words saith Aristotle shew that which is in the minde And though old men be aboue thréescore yeres of age yet want they not vnderstanding they be more wise then yong men This Homer sheweth where he saith that King Agamemnon wished rather for tenne ancient men as Nestor was to be his Counsellers at the winning of Troy then ten yong men like to Achilles And that Agamemnon said true it is séene by the most excellent Don Hernando de Toledo Duke Dalua who in wisedome experience of many affaires supplied the turnes of tenne Nestors in counselling the great Monarch of Spayne the Catholick king Phillip 5 We may see how necessarie olde men are to giue counsell by this that y e Lawes of Greece ordained that those should be admitted to be Counsellers that were past fiftie yéeres of age Solon seeing that the flatterie of Pisistratus wherwith he abused the people of Athens was openly discouered and known to pretende no other thing then to vsurpe the Empire and to bring the gouernment of the Common-wealth vnto the rule of one man onely himselfe and that no man durst take vppon him to resist and hinder him he himselfe fetching his weapons out and laying them in the streete before his doore called all the Citizens to helpe him And Pisistratus sending vnto him to know vpō what assurance he durst be so bold to doo such things he aunswered vpon olde age which alwaies is most readie to giue counsaile in matters of waight and importance For it is frée as Plato saith from those affections and passions which trouble and molest youth King Agis béeing in Archadia with his Armie and readio to pitch the field with his enemies there was an ancient Lacedemonian that cryed out a loude that he should consider that one sore was not to be cured by another Signifying by this that he might haue gone away from the
Argiues and saued himselfe without putting himselfe to the worst by that his determined boldnes out of time and season Agis hearing this did according to the olde mans words and altering his minde went from the Argiues and afterward ouercâ—me them without danger For this old man euerie daie they did set a Chayre at the doore of the Senate-house thys was a custome among them and many times the chéefest Senators arose and came vnto him to aske him and consulte with him about hard and difficult matters of importance 6 That men might vnderstand that to counsell wel consisteth rather in the vigor of the mind then in the forces of the bodie in ancient times past they painted the Image of Mercurie in the disposition and forme of an old man without hands and feete his members béeing onely stretched out For force strength and those parts that mooue the bodie are nothing necessary so that their reason and vnderstanding be fruitfull and fertile Plutarch by many other examples prooueth that it is conuenient for an old man to gouerne because it is proper vnto old men to giue good counsell It is a common saying in Spayne Con mal esta â—l corral a do boye vieio non corse with the Oxehouse it goeth ill inough where the old Oxe doth not cough Againe QuaÌ„do el perro vieio ladra a conseia When the old dog barketh he counselleth Againe Si quieris buen conseio pridesâ—o al vicio If that thou wilt good counsell haue Of the olde man see thou it craue Iob saith that wisedome is in olde men And Ecclesiasticus that wisedome becommeth old men well and theyr counsails ought to be had in account Plato counselleth that olde men of approoued experience prudence wisedome and loue towards their Country shold be chosen to gouerne the Common-welth In Homer ancient Nestors speech is praised as the most worthiest of all and Nestor speaking of himselfe saith 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Middest the horsmen wil I ride with counsell them to aide For of old ancient men to be the dutie this is saide And the same Homer in his Odissea praiseth Aegiptius the ancient because he alwaies spake first saying this vearse of him 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Because of age whose wearie lims did crooked grow And by experience who much did know Euripides in his Tragedies bringeth in Iocasta an ancient Matrone speaking to her Sonne after this manner 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 O son Eteocles olde age with euils is not fraight But by experience the youth can speak of greater waight Seneca saith that it is the duetie of yong men to obey and of old men to counsell and commaund Aristotle affirmeth that we ought not to commend the affaires of the Common-wealth to all manner of men but according to euery ones age and prudence For young men by the law of Nature haue strength to execute and olde men wisedome to counsell Euripides saith That we ought to commit the execution of matters to young men and the consultation vnto old men because it is giuen vnto olde men to counsaile well the houses in which they assemble to consult are in Latine called Senatus but if young men commonly méete together in them then they ought not to be called Senatus but Iuuenatus as Boaetius saith 7 Euery Prince ought to consider that there happened much harme great tumults arose among the Isralites because Roboam their king leauing the counsell of old and expert men in the gouernment of the Common-wealth folowed the minds of young and vnskilfull Counsellers And straight after that ouer-thwart counsell followed the seperation of the twelue Tribes the deuision of the people the destruction of the Common-wealth of Israell and contempt of God Then began Idolatrie and the condemnation of the tenne Tribes for withdrawing themselues from the vnion and true worshipping of the Lord. All these heauie and greeuous harmes befel vnto Israell because the King knewe not what counsels he should choose and because he would not ioyne with the counsell of the wisest and most experienced men which in his dayes and with his owne eyes he saw On the otherside may we sée and consider how prosperously those kings gouerned that were guided and ledde by the counsels of wise men and especially of such as feared God We may behold how well king Pharao gouerned when Ioseph was with him and king Saul when he folowed the counsell of Samuel And the king of Syria when he had Naaman at his elbow and Ioas when he did according to Ioyadas his mind and Nabuchadnezzor when he did as the Prophet Daniell counselled him and Nehemias when he did according to the counsell of Esdras Happie are those Common-weales which God blesseth with such Priests as Esdras to shewe and teach them how they ought to serue our Redéemer and Lorde Jesus Christ and vpon which he bestoweth such Princes as Nehemias to bind those that are committed to his charge to do according to Gods commaundements and ioyntly of his owne liberallitie to succor and reléeue the people that is afflicted destroied and impouerished through warre pestilence famine ioyning mercy with iustice as our Lord and Sauiour Jesus Christ teacheth in the Parable of the Samaritane that cured him that was hurt with Oyle and Wine signifying mercy by the Oyle and iustice by the Wine 8 The fourth qualitie which King Salomon would haue a Counseller to haue is that when he counselleth he should not be sorrowfull for a troubled and greeued minde drieth the bones as king Salomon saith and therefore much more the flesh and the blood And a mans mind béeing vexed with gréefe is obfuscated and darkned with the passions which he suffereth so that he cannot vnderstande and iudge well of that which is counselled The people of Parthia to shunne this inconuenience did consult of that they had to doo in banquets For sorrow bindeth mans vnderstanding and for this cause this is vsed in Spayne for a common prouerbe Mal se cura de suentura contristura that is sorrow cannot launce away our mischance For after that some mis-fortune is happened all the sorrowe that a man can haue will not remedie it 9 The fift qualitie is that the counsell ought to be well thought of and as it is said vpon the pillow For that counsell which is not well tossed and tumbled in our minde bringeth repentance with it for the more matters are considered wayed the better they be vnderstood and both haste and anger are contrarie to deliberation and consultation And therefore it is said that haste is a Mother in lawe vnto counsell Titus Liuius termeth hastines blind and without prouidence The naturall Philosophers say that dogges be borne blinde because the damme maketh haste to whelpe them It falleth out somtimes that men aske counsell of their
reason as wel by rewards as by punishment in euery Common-wealth Parliaments be holden in which the Estates being assembled together consult vpon all things that necessarily ought to be doone for the commoditie profit and conseruation of the whole Common-wealth 14 Aristotle is of this minde that such Lawes and ordinaunces as are profitable to the Common-wealth shoulde not be altered and that those that are not very harmfull shold not be abrogated for if they shoulde still be chaunged altered and renued and haue no stablenes or firmitie in them they be but little accounted and esteemed of by the people for they thinke that as some of them be changed so they wil al be altered And therfore they obey not the Lawes with such reuerence and dutie as they ought to doo This which Aristotle saith ought to be obserued in the election of Officers and Magistrates and all other things pertaining to the Common-wealth not changing or renuing any Law or ordinaunce which endomageth not the Common-wealth for the lesse they be chaunged or reformed the lesse they be transgressed As I writte more at large in my Bookes of pollicies and Common-weales in the Treatise of Lawes and Law-makers But if the Gouernours of the Common-weales chaunge and alter one manner of gouernment into another they ought to forecast and consider with themselues whether that people whose gouernment they goe about to abolish are wonted and accustomed to liue in libertie and whether they be priuiledged and haue gotten the gouernment by succession or by lawe of Armes for those Princes find the people more louing and willing to obey that continue in succession of some estate then they that newlie beginne the inheritaunce Cornelius Tacitus saith that it is expedient that they which newlie obtaine some estate should vse great liberalitie mercie especially if the people be accustomed to be mercifully and curteously dealt withall So that if Princes followe that counsaile which the Elders gaue vnto Roboam despising the aduice which the young men gaue him then they shall gouerne their people as Phillip de la Torre saith with loue of brotherhood and Christian charitie to the end that the people with the same loue and charitie may obey them For there is no better way for a Prince to be beloued honoured reuerenced and obâ—ied of his Subiects then to loue theÌ„ first which Princes would soone doo if they did enter into themselues and consider y t they are Sheepheards Pastors and fathers of the multitude which God hath committed and commended vnto them to maintaine and defend them and to ayde releeue and succour them when they be wearied with labours consumed with pestilence and wasted with warres But those subiects that be welthy well able ought to ayde their Prince in the defence of the CoÌ„mon-wealth and releefe of the poore and needie people that haue beene oppressed with the gréeuous tyrannie of war For séeing that parte of the commoditie that is gotten by defending the Common-wealth falleth to their share it is great reason they should assist their Prince to ayde the Common-wealth and deliuer it from out the hands of the enemie putting him to flight and driuing him from their borders and they ought not to excuse themselues either because they be exempted or priuiledged for no such excuses are to be admitted in time of necessitie But the Prince on the otherside must so moderately and after such order vse them that he doo not as the Emperour Tiberius saith flea them but shaue theÌ„ and séeing that the causes wherfore we be chastised ill dealt withal destroyed and vexed with warres famine dissentions and plagues are common for we are all sinners and in many things we greatly offende against the Lord and perchaunce they that thinke themselues blamelesse are most faultie it is great reason that euery one shoulde ioyne with the King and beare a part of all the troubles and charges with him séeing that not so much as our Kedéemer and Lord Jesus Christ nor all the Apostles denied to pay their part vnto the Magistrates if not for right and because it is due yet bothe because the Common-wealth shoulde not be disquieted and also with their example to encourage and stir vp others that be better able to doo the same 15 Very small faults and such as are not seene at the first are more dangerous then greate faults for that danger which is knowne causeth men to séeke meanes to auoide it but that which is not knowne groweth so much by little and litle that when it is knowne it cannot be remedied and it is like vnto the disease called Febris ethica which when it beginneth a man feeleth or perceiueth not any harme but when it is come so farre that he knoweth it no medicine can cure it And thys doth proceede by reason that men commonly consider only that which they sée and that which at the beginning seemeth to bee but a small thing and altogether vnlike to become anie thing hurtfull growing by little and little at length waxeth verie domagable to the Common-wealth which may be easily séene in those assemblies and congregations where many meete together in secret which at the beginning seeme not to threaten any great harme and yet at the length when they are fullie growne and augmented they wonderfullie disquiet the Common-weales and cause many hurlie-burlies The Romaines would not permitte any great assemblies or companies to gather together without they had licence of the Prince and they ordayned that euery companie or congregation shoulde haue a President whom because of the authoritie that was giuen him by the Prince all they that were of those congregations or assemblies should obey And those Presidents shold enquire and examine what men gathered into those companies For the people beeing like to the Sea which by any wind is soone mooued they that assemble together wheÌ„ oportunitie serueth they disquiet the CoÌ„mon-wealth And as it doth a man much harme to haue any one of all his members to growe bigger then the rest and to excéede the proportion of all his other members so great care ought to be had that no assemblie or congregation be suffered to growe so long that it may bring harme vnto the Common-wealth The Emperour Traianus wrote vnto Plinie when he gouerned the prouince of Bethynia that he should not let the companie of those that made the Armour Instruments for war to encrease so much that they might hurte or endomage the Common-wealth 16 When the gouernment beginneth to be deminished because there be more that gouerne naughtilie then well theÌ„ a small thing sufficeth to hinder the execution of that which is determined in the Counsell and though some counsaile well yet it is to no end séeing that the greater part beareth it away and their béeing in the Counsell is to no other purpose then to be partakers of the fault which they commit that counsaile ill these
reuenged of him or because they loue the other and desire greatlie to haue him to be their King Certaine Cities in Asia did rebell by reason of y e hatred which they bore against Laodice and his sonne Seleucus and because of the affection with which they loued Bernice and his Sonne This pollicie Fernandus Cortes vsed in the Conquest of the Kingdome of Mexico making warre against King Motesuma with his owne Subiects that could not abide him 5 Many Princes haue atchiued many famous and excellent victories through the estimation credit and reputation of their own persons Alexander the great published that he was Sonne vnto Iupiter though he knew it was not so that those Nations vpon whō he made warre should yeeld and giue ouer their Countries vnto him If the Captaines and Generals of Armies be valiant and renowned they procure and obtayne freends and alliance and easilie atchiue victorie but if they be not famous they can hardly attaine good successe in theyr enterprises they are alwaies crossed with vnfortunate euents Some coūsaile Princes to see whether those Captaines which they choose for their warres be fortunate in those Martial enterprises which they vndertake for it is thought that Fortune as Salust saith preuaileth much in warfare But seeing that the people commonly call that fortune which by chaunce happeneth well or ill for which no reason can be giuen and this is vncertaine and variable no man can perswade himselfe that he shall alwaies haue prosperous lucke and for this cause was Fortune painted vpon a wheele which is euer turning Manie times Captains haue excellent good luck in one thing and verie badde fortune in another as Hanniball tolde Scipio and as Hanniball himselfe had tryed by experience Seeing that the euents of warres are so vncertain and variable wise and valiant Captaines ought to encrease the fame which is bruted abroade of their good lucke and prosperitie in theyr Martiall endeuours that they may encourage their souldiers to fight and they that are not fortunate ought to shewe vnto their Souldiers how inconstant and variable Fortune is and to perswade them that thence-forwarde all matters wyll succéede more happilie for the aduenture of war is vncertaine 6 The first thing that all Princes which make war ought to doo is to iustifie that warre which they take in hand that all men may knowe that they are bounde to fight by the necessitie which compelleth them to defende themselues and although their cause be good and grownded vppon reason and iustice yet they ought to accept any honest and lawfull condition of peace which their enemies doo offer them Againe Princes ought to consider that warres are commonly made either to recouer that which hath béene taken from them or to reuenge some iniurie that hath beene offered vnto them or because they desire to atchiue glorie and renowne or for ambition the first and seconde causes are iust the thirde is vniust and the fourth is tyrannie The Romans were alwaies verie carefull in iustifying the warres which they made with all dilligence possible which may be seene by this that the Embassadour of the Ile of Rhodes when he went about to praise the people of Rome saide in a certaine Oration which he made to the Senate that the Romans did not so much esteeme the conquest as the equitie of their cause and because in my booke of Militarie discipline I haue largely writtē how Princes ought to iustifie their wars I meane not heere to stand vpon it 7 They that consult vpon Martiall affaires ought to enquire when they be ouercome with their enemies whether the faulte was in the Captaines or in the common Souldiers or because it pleased God that though euery man did his duetie yet they shoulde be put to the worse and after the cause is knowne they ought to thinke vpon the remedie and to doe all things that are expedient to atchiue victorie of their enemies And if they vnderstande y t their enemies are stronger and that they must continue their warres it is better for them to defer the field as Fabius Maximus did then to enter battell to the manifest daunger of their whole Armie For with delaying the time they may ouercome and with giuing a rash onsette they shall be put to flight and as we of olde say in Castile Diez aunos de guerra y no vn dia de pelea that is Warres for tenne yeeres assay And battell but one day And because no Captaine howe wise soeuer he be can imagine and forecast all inconueniences which may fall out in war it is conuenient that euery Captain take counsaile with faithfull prudent and wise men and well experienced in warfare which may tell him the trueth without any deceite The Carthagenians did estéeme so much of counsaile in Militarie actions that they hanged those Captaines and Generals which ouer came their enemies without taking aduise The Venetians did not permitte their Generals to pitch a fielde with their enemies vnlesse the Prouisors which were sent to the wars with them did consent vnto it 8 Captaines and Generals shall obtaine the fauour and good will of the people if they minister iustice vnto them and permit not any one to offer them any iniurie or to take awaie their substance vniustly or to dishonor and discredit thē wrongfullie And as for the good will of the Souldiers the Captains may obtaine that by béeing valiant and liberall for these two vertues make a Captaine to be beloued And though it seeme a thing impossible that a Captaine shoulde be fauoured bothe of the people and his Souldiers also because the people wishe to keepe their goods and substaunce and the Souldiers desire to pill and robbe yet notwithstanding this hindereth not for they may well enough deale vprightlie with the people that are their owne freends and alliance and the Souldiours may rob pill slay and spoyle those that dwell in their enemies Countries Furthermore if by chaunce the Captaine be compelled by necessitie to aske some newe tribute to pay the charges of the warre he ought with moeke wordes and good reasons first to shew as Tullie saith the necessitie which at that instant vrgeth him to demaunde it and then he ought to let them vnderstand that it concerneth the whole Common-wealth and whē oportunitie serued he woulde repay that which they doe lende him Generals and Captaines of Armies ought to see that no idle persons and such as are vnapt for warre doo loyter in the Campe that each souldier imploy himselfe in all such things as are thought to be necessarie for the atchiuing of victorie 9 The Counsellers of Princes ought to examine whether it be more profitable for the Common-wealth to stay till the enemie come to make warre vppon them at home or whether it be better to assaile them in their Countrey This beeing disputed vppon in the Senate of Rome Fabius Maximus affirmed that it was better for them to
that follow not this doctrine God visiteth with calamities and aduersities which hee sendeth vnto them to cause them to turne frō their wickednes and to obey his commandements That which we say of Christian Princes is also to be vnderstoode of those iust and vertuous Princes whom God doth crosse with mis-fortunes troubles that they may be suffering them patientlie deserue that glorie which God giueth vnto thē that serue him To be pressed with miserie plague famine fire and warre is common both to good and wicked men but onely good vertuous men die in the seruice of our Lorde and Sauiour Jesus Christ bearing his crosse on their shoulders for as the kingly Prophet saith precious in y e sight of the Lord is the death of his Saints 3 God also destroieth Cōmon-weales by appointing children to rule ouer them as the Prophet Esay saith and I will appoint children to be their Princes and babes shal rule ouerthem For sorrowfull as King Salomon saith is that Kingdome in which the Prince that ruleth it is a Childe and they that giue him counsaile and gouerne him are giuen to theyr lustes and pleasures and also the Prophet Hoseas saith that when God is angrie and will punish the people for their sinnes which they commit he appointeth children to be their Princes The Romans in theyr processions beséeched God continuallie that it would please him to be so fauourable vnto them as not to appoint Children that shoulde be gouerned by Tutors and Protectors to rule ouer them But yet as King Salomon saith better is a poore and wise Childe then an olde and foolish King which will be no more admonished for olde fooles are in the Scriptures called children of an hundred yeeres of age GOD doth also chastice the Common-weales giuing them base and vile persons that shall put their hands to the wherue as the Scriptures say handle the spyndle Which thing is properly belonging vnto women as Homer doth giue vs to vnderstand when be bringeth Telemachus speaking thus to his Mother 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 But home to doe your busines may you hie Your spynning and your distaffe to applie And eake your Maydes vnto their taskes to tie And therefore in warres they were wont to put spyndles and distaues in those Souldiers hands that were cowards and dastards for such men are rather to be termed women then men GOD doth also chastice Common-weales giuing them rashe Prelats learned men without harts and without courage vnskilfull Phisitions vnconscionable and vnlearned Judges and vnprofitable people that stand the Common-welth in no stéed but to eate and to drinke the foode and the sustenance which the earth bringeth foorth as the idle and wandering persons doe which waste and spoile the Common-welth more then the Fly called Locusta which burneth Corne with touching and denoureth the residue and they doo the Common-wealth no good at all and be lesse profitable then the labouring beastes that with drawing and bearing helpe to maintaine the Common-wealth and for this cause doth Plato safe that no Cittie can be termed happie in which many poore idle and loytering persons liue who béeing able to worke will rather begge and so committe all kind of wickednes to maintain themselues Furthermore God chastiseth Common-weales if those that liue in them vse to deceiue one another and for loue of money commit iniquitie by reason whereof God translateth the kingdom from one people to another Againe God dooth chastice Common-weales if they that gouerne beare rule ouer them permitte men to sinne publiquelie for that were to bring the people againe to Egipt and for this cause dooth God punish Common-weales with all those cursses plagues which the Scripture saith shall come on them that will not obey the voyce of the Lorde and keepe his commaundements and ordinaunces Besides Common-weales perrish and decay if any factions and diuisions raigne in them for factious and dissentions persons disquiet the Common-wealth and taking aduauntage by the malice of a few and the ignoraunce of manie disturbe and endomage the Common-wealth to encrease and augment theyr owne commoditie for as our Spanish prouerbe saith Rio buelto gananciaes de pescadores The laded Riuer gaines Yeelds for the fishers paynes Factions and diuisions were cause of the destruction of the Empire of Rome as may be seene in the dissentions which grew in Rome because of the Lawes Agraria which caused great alterations at euerie time that the people of Rome did intend to establish it in that Cittie this Lawe Agraria had two especiall clauses the one ordained that no Cittizen might possesse more then a certaine number of Akers of lande the other that all what soeuer was gotten from the enemies should be equallie deuided among the people of Rome and this Lawe was verie hurtfull to the Noble men for it depriued them of their goods and hindered them from increasing their welth and riches But the Noble men opposing themselues sought one remedie or other to put down this Law and either they brought an Armie of man out of the Cittie or they caused that when one Tribune did propose the Lawe another shoulde contrarie him or they graunted part of the Lawe or they sent people to inhabit that place which should haue beene distributed among the people of Rome to be short howe hurtfull it is to fauour and maintaine scismes and partialities in a Common-wealth may be seene in that many Common weales haue béene therby destroied and ouerthrowne and therefore Plato calleth dissentions and factions poyson that spoyleth and destroyeth Common-weales To make an end those Common-weales that are gouerned by the people perrish and decay if one man continue long in the gouernment and this was the cause of the destruction of Rome as may be noted in Iulius Caesar who tyrannised though notwithstanding Cato Vticensis wiselie diuining and coniecturing the euent of the matter contraried the people of Rome in that they did appoint Iulius Caesar to continue in the generallship longger then his day before prefixed saying that they gaue the Armes and weapons vnto him that with them should destroy them Unto which Pompey who at that time fauoured Iulius Caesar answered that Cato by saying so did nothingels but giue thē occasion to suspect that he owed Iulius Caesar a grudg and that which he said himselfe did procéed of freendshippe Againe the people of Rome hauing appointed the Trybunes or Protectors of the Commons to continue in their Office the second yeere because they thought that they were very sufficient to withstand the ambition of the Noble men and to maintain the libertie and benefite of the Common people against theyr power the Senate because they would not serme to haue lesse power and authoritie then the people would haue had Lucius Quintius who at that time was to giue ouer his Consulship to some other to continue in his