Machiavellian Maneuvers
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Machiavelli said there are three ways to hold a state that previously had lived under its own laws (Machiavelli, 46):
- Allow them to live under their own laws and force them to pay tribute.
- Go there and live there in person.
- Despoil it totally.
King George tried to apply Machiavelli's principals to America.
First he tried to allow the colonists to live under their own laws and pay tribute. Taxes might be a better word. That didn't work very well, especially when he enacted taxes without including the colonists in the discussions.
He never considered living in America, but he did, of course, have a government in residence. It wasn't very effective.
Then, tribute failing and unwilling to live in America, he tried to despoil the colonies to bring them back under his control. That didn't work very well, initially, as his troops were bested in Boston.
After retreating from Boston, and landing in New York, Admiral Lord Howe sent captured American General Sullivan to address Congress in order to entice them to negotiate. John Adams accused Howe of "Machiavellian maneuvers" (McCullough, 156), namely, attempting to entice the nation back to subserviency with peace discussions when war had already been declared. None-the-less Adams, with Franklin and Rutledge, were elected to sit with Howe to listen to what he had to say. Howe's words forced Adams to realize that there was no pardon waiting him, and no freedom awaiting the colonies, if the revolutionaries lost. He - and they - would hang. After that realization, it was obvious that no negotiation was going to work and that Howe would have to despoil America to re-take control. While the British had some succeses, ultimately they had to surrender.
George failed, ultimately, as we all know. Distance, both physical and personal, caused him to fail - on all three strategies.
Modern day companies try to do better. Google might be a good case in point. The best recent quote says it all, "Usually, people want to be acquired by Google. It's always very friendly. Because they have choices, and they choose us ( BusinessWeek, 56)."
If only King George had tried a little bit harder. We might all still be British. And Google? Let's see how long their run lasts.
References
How Google Fuels Its Idea Factory. BusinessWeek. 12 May 2008. 54.
Machiavelli, Niccolo. The Prince. New American Library. 1952.
McCullough, David. John Adams. Simon & Schuster. 2001.