Nazi Prince

   To be a good Prince one must accumulate a life time of knowledge and put it to use as intended. This knowledge was made available to everyone as it was condensed into a single book by Niccolo Machiavelli. In The Prince, by Machiavelli, the necessary attributes and actions required to maintain a Princedom are outlined and explained. Several rulers put Machiavelli’s ideals to good use over the centuries, but one Empire that failed to do so was the Nazi Regime. As seen in Maus, by Art Spiegelman, the Nazis failed to follow Machiavelli’s guidelines and as a result quickly lost their power.

            In, The Prince, Machiavelli essentially describes several basic rules on how to maintain a Princedom, and although the Nazis did not call it a Princedom, their respective governments had similarities. As his first rule Machiavelli explains that when invading a foreign country it is important not to weaken and already weak state. To do so would anger enough people to start a revolution, whereas if left alone the people would live peaceable without causing trouble. When the Nazis moved into a country they devastated the people especially the Jewish community. This targeting of specific groups caused enough grief to turn the entire world against the Nazis.

            The second mistake the Nazis made according to Machiavelli was that Hitler, the leader of the Nazis, did not come to reside in the countries he conquered. By coming to reside in a new province a leader would essentially make that province invulnerable to outside forces. However, Hitler for the most part remained in Germany allowing outside forces and the forces of provinces that had been invaded, to retake the land from the Nazis. This mistake of not coming to reside cost the Nazis many of the provinces that they worked so hard to take.

            Another mistake made by the Nazis as seen in Maus, and explained by Machiavelli, is the sending of troops into their conquered provinces. Rather than sending troops who created tension with the town’s residents, the Nazis instead should have setup colonies. A colony would have avoided tensions between the soldiers and civilians and would have allowed the Nazis to save more money for the war as a colony is self-sufficient. However, instead the Nazis sent troops to bully the citizens of their provinces losing the good will of the people.

            Lastly, for a new state to succeed it must have the good will of the people. The Nazis severely messed up in this area as they sought to exterminate the people of their conquered provinces. In, Maus, the Jewish community was rounded up without discrimination and murdered on a massive scale. This treatment of the Jewish community angered many people and the angry people eventually welcomed other powers into their country to take power from the Nazis. These mistakes cost the Nazis their empire as they fought to keep control over their own provinces while being attacked by outside forces.