Born in Florence in 1469, died in 1527; of a noble but
impoverished family; employed in diplomatic missions to
small Italian states and France and Germany; deprived of
office when the Medici returned to Florence in 1512;
imprisoned and tortured in 1513 on suspicion of being a
conspirator; retired to a country estate, where he took up
literary work; author of "The Prince," "The History of
Florence," essays and comedies.