The Influence of Machiavelli on the Founding Fathers of the United States
When discussing the intellectual influences on the Founding Fathers of the United States, one typically hears names such as Locke, Montesquieu, and Blackstone. However, one influential thinker often overlooked is Niccolò Machiavelli. Far from being merely the author...
The ideas that formed the Constitution: Tacitus
The authors discussed in this series impacted the Constitution both directly and indirectly. Citations to the authors by participants in the constitutional debates of 1787–1790 are evidence of direct influence. Indirect influence occurred in at least two ways. First,...
The ideas that formed the Constitution: Plutarch
The historian Livy, whose influence with the founding generation was the topic of the previous installment, died in 17 C.E. In the two centuries following, the Roman Empire produced many other influential writers. The Roman Empire had a pair of official languages:...