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the prince to a new ruler than the new laws and institutions he intro- duces. When they are well thought out and show vision they bring a ruler respect and admiration. Italy is hardly lacking in raw material for the man who wants to give form to it. The limbs are healthy and strong; all they need is a head to guide them. Look how much stronger, defter and more skilful Italians are than foreigners in duels or small skirmishes. But when it comes to armies they can’t compete. Because they are badly led. The capable men are ignored, the incapable are convinced they are capable, and to date no one has had the talent and luck to score the sort of success that would force the others to stand aside. That’s why in all these wars over the past twenty years, whenever an army has been entirely made up of Italians it has always failed miserably, as witness first the battle of Taro, then those of Alessandria, Capua, Genova, Vailà, Bologna and Mestre. So if your illustrious family should choose to follow in the steps of those excellent men who came to the rescue of their peoples, the first thing that needs to be done, the real foun- dation of any such achievement, is to establish an army of your own citizens. You can’t have more loyal, determined and better soldiers than your own. And if each man taken singly is good, when they’re all together and find themselves led, fed and respected by their own ruler they’ll be even better. Founding an army like this is absolutely essential if we are to use Italian mettle to defend ourselves against foreign enemies. It’s true that the Swiss and Spanish infantries are thought to be formidable, but both have weak points that would allow a third force not only to face them but to feel confident of beating them. The Spanish can’t stand up to cavalry and the Swiss are in trouble when they run into infantry as determined as themselves. That’s why, as we’ve seen and will see again, the Spanish can’t turn back a French cavalry attack and the Swiss collapse in front of a Spanish-style infantry. And though