In the last part of his Florentine Trilogy, David Swatling examines the life of Niccolo Machiavelli (1469-1527), the Florentine statesman and political writer who advocated resorting to morally questionable methods in the interest of the state. Today, “Machiavellian” has come to mean: elaborate, cunning, scheming, unscrupulous. The programme features interviews and readings from Machiavelli’s works.
Producer: David Swatling
Broadcast: September 6, 2000