Born into a modest family in fifteenth century Florence, Niccolò Machiavelli became ambassador of the Florentine Republic at the early age of twenty-nine. After fourteen years of service, he was falsely accused of conspiracy, thrown into prison, tortured, and subsequently forced to abandon his beloved city. For the remainder of his years he wrote novellas, histories, plays, and highly celebrated political treatises such as the Discourses on Livy, The Art of War, and his irreverent masterpiece, The Prince.