Machiavelli Henry IV and Elizabeth I

Niccolò Machiavelli was a Renaissance philosopher. He wrote a book called The Prince which was about how a prince or ruler should rule his estate. Machiavelli said, "A prince must imitate the fox and the lion, for the lion cannot protect himself from traps, and the fox cannot defend himself from wolves. One must therefore be a fox to recognize traps, and a lion to frighten wolves. Those that wish to be only lions do not understand this. Therefore, a prudent ruler ought not to keep faith when by so doing it would be against his interest, and when the reasons which made him bind him no longer exist. If men were all good, this precept would not be a good one; but as they are bad, and would not observe their faith with you, so you are not bound to keep faith with them." The meaning behind this quote is that Machiavelli states that in order to gain and maintain power a ruler must have the power to behave like a lion or a fox. Many rulers' centuries later still followed his policies including Elizabeth I of England and Henry IV of France. They used politique. A politique is a ruler who suppresses his or her religious designs for his or her kingdom in favor of political expediency. Machiavelli's resemblance between the lion and the fox and a successful ruler are seen through Elizabeth I of England and how she manipulated many rulers with her sex to form alliances, but was strong when needed and Henry IV of France and how he put his country above religion.

Elizabeth I was a real politique. She inherited the throne from Mary Tudor, a full on Christian. Elizabeth was a very beautiful woman. Elizabeth had a very good education and could speak many languages. Elizabeth I was very manipulative and like a fox in many ways. She used her education and looks to her advantage. She would toy with men from many different states around Europe and make them interested in her. She would then claim to marry but never actually follow through. She would do this to gain alliances so, rulers from elsewhere in Europe wouldn't wage war against England because they thought Elizabeth I was interested in them when it was all really a strategic move for England to stay out of war. Along with her strategic love life she was also in charge of England. She knew that she had to be strong or she would be crushed. She gave the power to the men of the council to make them feel in charge when really she was the supreme ruler of England. The act of Supremacy enacted by Elizabeth's father made her the supreme governor. This meant that anyone seeking a position in the church had to swear allegiance to Elizabeth I. Aside from her manipulative fox side she was also very much like a lion. King Phillip II of Spain, a Christian, wanted control over the Netherlands and wanted to stop the revolts from the Protestants, Elizabeth I helped the Netherlands hold its ground, because she was a Protestant as well and also wanted to avoid a religious war at all cost. She did this to avoid a major war between Protestants and Christians that may have arose if these actions had not been taken. At the time, Mary Stuart, her cousin, ruled Scotland and did not like Elizabeth I of England. Mary was the next heir to the English throne and if Elizabeth was dead she would take control