The cities of Germany are absolutely free, they own
but little country around them, and they yield obedience
to the emperor when it suits them, nor do they fear
this or any other power they may have near them, because
they are fortified in such a way that every one thinks
the taking of them by assault would be tedious and
difficult, seeing they have proper ditches and walls,
they have sufficient artillery, and they always keep
in public depots enough for one year’s eating,
drinking, and firing. And beyond this, to keep
the people quiet and without loss to the state, they
always have the means of giving work to the community
in those labours that are the life and strength of
the city, and on the pursuit of which the people are
supported; they also hold military exercises in repute,
and moreover have many ordinances to uphold them.
Therefore, a prince who has a strong city, and had
not made himself odious, will not be attacked, or
if any one should attack he will only be driven off
with disgrace; again, because that the affairs of this
world are so changeable, it is almost impossible to
keep an army a whole year in the field without being
interfered with. And whoever should reply:
If the people have property outside the city, and see
it burnt, they will not remain patient, and the long
siege and self-interest will make them forget their
prince; to this I answer that a powerful and courageous
prince will overcome all such difficulties by giving
at one time hope to his subjects that the evil will
not be for long, at another time fear of the cruelty
of the enemy, then preserving himself adroitly from
those subjects who seem to him to be too bold.
Further, the enemy would naturally on his arrival
at once burn and ruin the country at the time when
the spirits of the people are still hot and ready
for the defence; and, therefore, so much the less ought
the prince to hesitate; because after a time, when
spirits have cooled, the damage is already done, the
ills are incurred, and there is no longer any remedy;
and therefore they are so much the more ready to unite
with their prince, he appearing to be under obligations
to them now that their houses have been burnt and
their possessions ruined in his defence. For
it is the nature of men to be bound by the benefits
they confer as much as by those they receive.
Therefore, if everything is well considered, it will
not be difficult for a wise prince to keep the minds
of his citizens steadfast from first to last, when
he does not fail to support and defend them.
CHAPTER XI — CONCERNING ECCLESIASTICAL PRINCIPALITIES
