Tyranny

The tyrant is the most wretched of men, enslaved to his own appetites, ruling by fear and making the city a mirror of his disordered soul.

Tyranny is monarchy that serves the ruler's advantage alone, governing unwilling subjects against their interest.

Tyrannical government is altogether corrupt; the tyrant who oppresses his subjects is himself guilty of sedition.

A new prince must sometimes act tyrannically to secure the state; cruelty well-used, applied once and decisively, may be necessary.

The name 'tyranny' is merely 'monarchy misliked'; absolute power is necessary, and calling the sovereign a tyrant is mere displeasure.

Tyranny is the exercise of power beyond right; wherever law ends, tyranny begins.

Despotism rules by fear without fixed laws; the separation of powers is the structural remedy against tyranny.

A tyrant usurps royal authority; a despot usurps sovereign power; both violate the social contract and free the people from obedience.

The accumulation of all powers in the same hands is the very definition of tyranny; the remedy is separation of powers and federalism.

Despotism belongs to the childhood of history; the rational state supersedes tyranny by realizing freedom through law.