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Machiavelli’s Condition of a Good Ruler

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Machiavelli’s Condition of a Good Ruler
Essay Question #1

Thesis: Elizabeth I of England and Catherine the Great of Russia both had satisfied Machiavelli’s condition of a good ruler by being both firm and sly policies against the peasants/serfs, foreign countries, and religions.
1. Paragraph 1 TP: Elizabeth I had used merciful and tolerant policies against the peasants in order to avoid the revolts, while Catherine the Great had used force to crush the revolts and suppressed the serfs
a. Elizabeth I
i. Caring, Merciful, Cautious ii. *(1) The Poor Law – distributed the poor in the order of neediness iii. English drama – Shakespeare

b. Catherine the Great
i. Instructions - written guide to the deliberations, questioning the institution of serfdom, torture and capital punishment, advocated the equality of all people in the eyes of law ii. Revolt of Pugachev – crushed by the army iii. Bigger repression against the serfs iv. Expanded Serfdom

2. Paragraph 2 TP: Catherine the Great had used her strong army to occupy Poland and to expand her empire, while Elizabeth I avoided wars on surface but secretly encouraged Francis Drake to plunder Spanish fleets
a. Elizabeth I
i. Cautious about the wars ii. Francis Drake – plundered Spanish fleets loaded with gold and silver from the New World empire. iii. Destruction of Spanish Armada

b. Catherine the Great
i. Expansion of Poland ii. Defeat the Turks

3. Paragraph 3 TP: Elizabeth, even though she was a strong protestant, used her moderate policies against the religion and avoided conflicts, and Catherine the Great used her policies in order to settle the muslim nomadics.
a. Elizabeth I
i. Moderate policies against the puritans ii. Elizabethan religious settlements iii. Avoided conflicts – slightly protestant

b. Catherine the Great
i. *(2) Edict of 1773 – toleration of all faiths ii. *(2) Assimilation of Islamic schools – attempt to settle the nomadic muslims

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