The Prince
The Prince (Il Principe) is Niccolò Machiavelli's treatise on gaining and keeping power, written around 1513 and first printed in Rome by Antonio Blado in 1532, five years after the author's death. Edward Dacres's English translation, the first, appeared in London in 1640.
- Editions tracked
- 2
- First published
- Antonio Blado, Rome, 1532
- First UK edition
- R. Bishop for William Hills and Daniel Pakeman, 1640
- Worth
- Not yet valued
Which edition do you have?
Editions
- Printed for Sherwood, Neely and Jones1810 Hardback Not yet valued Log in to want this
- Clarendon Press1891 Hardback Not yet valued Log in to want this
We have not yet researched the issue points for this book. If you know how to tell the first from later printings, tell us and we will credit you once it is checked against a second source.
More by Niccolò Machiavelli
Reviews of The Prince
No reviews yet. Members can say what this book is like to read or collect.
Read it or own it? Share what The Prince is like to read or collect.
Know what you are looking at
How to Identify a First Edition
To identify a first edition, check that your copy is the first printing of the first edition. Read the copyright …
Read the guide →6 min readBook Condition Grading: Fine to Poor Explained
Book condition grading uses a six-step trade scale: Fine, Near Fine, Very Good, Good, Fair and Poor. Collectors grade the …
Read the guide →7 min readDust Jackets Explained: Why the Jacket Drives a Book's Value
For most books published since the 1920s, the original dust jacket carries a large share of the value, often most …
Read the guide →Frequently asked questions
How many editions of The Prince are there?
We track 2 editions of The Prince. Each has its own page with how to identify it.
How can I tell if my copy of The Prince is a first edition?
Check the title page and its reverse (the copyright page) against the edition: publisher, place and date should match, with no later printing or edition stated. Where we know the issue points, they are listed on the edition's page.
Where these facts come from
- The Prince, Wikipedia (en.wikipedia.org)
- Machiavelli, Il Principe, Florence 1532, Sotheby's, 2021 (sothebys.com)
- Nicholas Machiavel's Prince, 1640, Christie's (christies.com.cn)
Every fact on this page was checked against the sources listed. Checked 17 October 2026.