Fortune is a River: Leonardo Da Vinci and Niccolo Machiavelli's Magnificent Dream to Change the Course of Florentine History [Deckle Edge] [Hardcover]

Roger D. Masters (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 15, 1998

Telling of the friendship of Leonardo da Vinci and Niccolo Machiavelli, this text explores how the pair joined together under the inspiration of da Vinci's dream in an attempt to build a system of canals that would make the Arno River navigable from Florence to the sea.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

History is sometimes made by seemingly insignificant moments that turn out to have been pivotal in hindsight--and sometimes what didn't happen proves to be as important as what did. One such moment came in the Florentine court of Cesare Borgia, when a civil servant named Niccolò Machiavelli recruited a local engineer named Leonardo da Vinci to devise a plan to change the course of the Arno River. Diverting that river, Machiavelli reasoned, would deprive Florence's enemy, the nearby city-state of Pisa, of a dependable water supply. It would also make the Arno River navigable for oceangoing vessels from the inland city of Florence, and as an added incentive, would help limit damage caused by the flood-prone Arno to the surrounding farmlands.

Machiavelli and da Vinci devised a hydrological plan for the river that was extraordinarily promising, at least on paper. The flood-prone Arno, however, made the task an impossible challenge. The pair's chances of success were further reduced by poor design, bad timing, and undisciplined workers. Their failure brought official disfavor on Machiavelli and da Vinci alike. Leonardo transferred his studio to Milan and then Rome, where he would produce remarkable work, while Machiavelli retreated from public life for a time and used his forced leisure to write The Prince. Roger Masters crafts an epic tale out of a historical footnote. Although some of his conclusions are speculative in regards to Niccolò's and Leonardo's relationship, readers will likely find his narrative persuasive and deeply informed.

From Publishers Weekly

Providing a remarkable window on the birth of the modern age, this meticulous study examines the little-known collaboration of Leonardo da Vinci and Niccol? Machiavelli. The two worked together in Florence between 1503 and 1506, where Machiavelli, the Florentine republic's second chancellor, enlisted LeonardoAthen military architect and engineer to warlord Cesare BorgiaAin a grandiose scheme to redirect the Arno River's course and make Florence a seaport. Machiavelli's strategic goal was to deprive Florence's bitter rival Pisa of water from the Arno, which flowed through that city. Beyond this, Leonardo envisioned a transformation of the Arno valley into an irrigated flood-control system that would generate wealth and security for Tuscany. Leonardo and Machiavelli also collaborated on the renovation of a fortress and other military projects, yet most of their joint projectsAincluding the ill-conceived scheme to divert the ArnoAwere failures. Nevertheless, through parallel biographies of his two famed protagonists, Masters, a Dartmouth professor of government, presents architect-inventor Leonardo as a visionary who sought a rational society based on science, while Machiavelli is defended here for his realistic worldview that stressed the inevitability of selfishness and conflict. This surprising dual portrait is beautifully illustrated with Leonardo's architectural and engineering drawings, urban-planning sketches and maps.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 288 pages
• Publisher: Free Press (June 15, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0684844524
• ISBN-13: 978-0684844527
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.2 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (18 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,425,059 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A thrilling account of an unexpected contact between titans, July 19, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Fortune Is a River : Leonardo Da Vinci and Niccolo Machiavelli's Magnificent Dream to Change the Course of Florentine History (Paperback)

This is a beautifully written account of the meeting and connection of Leonardo and Machievelli which reveals facets of their lives and work heretofore unknown. It is based on punctilious and exhaustive scholarship and is given to the reader with warmth and clarity. It also underscores the practicality of Leonardo - who was after all a military engineer as well as remarkable artist - and Machiavelli who was an intense idealist about Florentine politics as well as a direct commentator on the human political condition.This is a wonderful book.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Three Fascinating Figures., August 11, 2006

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SUPPORT THE ASPCA. "PILUM THROWER!" (?????) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Fortune Is a River : Leonardo Da Vinci and Niccolo Machiavelli's Magnificent Dream to Change the Course of Florentine History (Paperback)

Da Vinci, Borgia, and Machiavelli. Could there be more different and yet fascinating people? This book has some rich details, but came across more as a lecture than a true history. Nonetheless, it is an insightful tour of the "intellectual depth of the Italian Renaissance."

The table of contents itself is instructive. 1-A Mysterious Friendship, 2-The Arno, 3-Leonardo Achieves Fame, 4-Niccolo Achieves Power, 5-The Meeting, 6-The Collaboration Begins, 7-The Arno diversion Fails, 8-The Aftermath, 9-Leonardo In The Courts Of Power, 10-Niccolo's Struggle, Victory, & Defeat, 11-The Legacy. The last chapter was the most informative to this reader. With notes, sources, credits, acknowledments, & Index it is 279 pages.

Its focus is on the joint attempt to divert the Arno river away from Florence's rival Pisa. The colorful complexities of life in Renaissance Italy was the main appeal. The author gives the reader a visual show of a turbulent and fascinating era. The main negative is the idea that DA Vinci & Machiavelli knew each other? I was told when I was in Italy that they did not. Still this was an entertaining read.

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A journey to the heart of the Renaissance., August 24, 1998

By 

Greg Otis - See all my reviews

This review is from: Fortune is a River: Leonardo Da Vinci and Niccolo Machiavelli's Magnificent Dream to Change the Course of Florentine History (Hardcover)

Starting from the unlikely perspective of a little known (perhaps because unsuccessful) collaboration between two of the greatest minds of the Renaissance to divert the course of the Arno River, Masters depicts the whole of 15th century Florentine life and unearths the themes that shaped Western Civilization. Besides the biographies of two fascinating men, he explores social mores, religious practice, hydraulic engineering, painting (fresco and canvas), music, literature, politics, the effect of illegitimacy on career opportunities and the economic, social, and psychological effects of the discovery of the New World. And that's only in the first two chapters! Painstakingly researched and beautifully written, this book should be read by anyone who wants to know how our culture came to be what it is. It suffers only from poor proofreading, and even that is compensated for by its magnificent typography. Don't be put off if I make it sound high-brow--it's not. It's highly readable, with fascinating, vivid characters who are amazingly similar to us, both in their lofty goals and in their all-too-human failings.