《君主论·第三章·混合君主国》第6节
Again, the prince who holds a country differing in the above respects ought to make himself the head and defender of his less powerful neighbours, and to weaken the more powerful amongst them, taking care that no foreigner as powerful as himself shall, by any accident, get a footing there; for it will always happen that such a one will be introduced by those who are discontented, either through excess of ambition or through fear, as one has seen already. The Romans were brought into Greece by the Ætolians; and in every other country where they obtained a footing they were brought in by the inhabitants. And the usual course of affairs is that, as soon as a powerful foreigner enters a country, all the subject states are drawn to him, moved by the hatred which they feel against the ruling power. So that in respect to those subject states he has not to take any trouble to gain them over to himself, for the whole of them quickly rally to the state which he has acquired there. He has only to take care that they do not get hold of too much power and too much authority, and then with his own forces, and with their goodwill, he can easily keep down the more powerful of them, so as to remain entirely master in the country. And he who does not properly manage this business will soon lose what he has acquired, and whilst he does hold it he will have endless difficulties and troubles.
注释摘要
这段论述的核心，是马基雅维利向新征服者提供的一整套分化与制衡的外交策略。他的主张很明确：当你占据了一个在语言、法律、风俗上都与你本土不同的异质地区，你应当主动成为周围弱小势力的领袖与保护者，同时全力削弱那些强大的邻邦，并且——这是最要紧的一点——绝不能让任何一个实力与你相当的外来强国，以任何借口在这个地区扎下根来。 这个推理链条建立在一个冷峻的观察之上：外…