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On Leaders and Tyrants

Brief Description
The first complete English translation of a controversial Renaissance debate centring on moral questions of power and leadership. Poggio Bracciolini was a prominent scholar-official of the early Renaissance and a leading representative of Florentine humanism. He was employed as a secretary to seven popes and ended... Read More
Format: Hardback
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On Leaders and Tyrants contains works, the majority by Renaissance humanist Poggio Bracciolini, relating to a debate on Scipio Africanus and Julius Caesar that discusses tyranny, military glory, and leadership qualities. This volume contains a fresh edition of the Latin texts and the first complete translation of the controversy into English.

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The first complete English translation of a controversial Renaissance debate centring on moral questions of power and leadership.

Poggio Bracciolini was a prominent scholar-official of the early Renaissance and a leading representative of Florentine humanism. He was employed as a secretary to seven popes and ended his career as Chancellor of the Republic of Florence.

On Leaders and Tyrants contains texts, the majority by Poggio, relating to a controversy on the relative merits of the lives and deeds of Scipio Africanus and Julius Caesar. The debate addressed the nature of tyranny and military glory, as well as the qualities necessary for republican leaders, such as Stoic virtue, lawfulness, and good citizenship.

Poggio's primary opponent was the educator Guarino of Verona, a humanist in the service of the duke of Ferrara. The psychology of power, the demands placed on public servants, and the dividing line between leadership and tyranny are as topical today as they were when Poggio wrote. This volume contains a fresh edition of the Latin texts and the first complete translation of the controversy into English.

Series: The I Tatti Renaissance Library

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Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9780674297128

Publisher: Harvard University Press

Format: Hardback

Date Published: 17 September 2024

Country: United States

Imprint: Harvard University Press

Contributors:

  • Edited and translated by Hester Schadee
  • Edited and translated by Keith Sidwell
  • With David Rundle

Audience: Tertiary education

DIMENSIONS

Spine width: 25.0mm

Width: 133.0mm

Height: 203.0mm

Weight: 702g

Pages: 624

About the Author

Hester Schadee is Senior Lecturer in European History at the University of Exeter. Keith Sidwell is Emeritus Professor of Classics at University College Cork, Ireland, and Adjunct Professor of Classics at the University of Calgary. David Rundle is Senior Lecturer in Latin and Paleography at the University of Kent.

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