Of Empire
by
Francis Bacon
(Summary)
This essay is political. It has a touch of
history and enriches our historical knowledge. Bacon says that a man would be miserable
if he has nothing to wish for and if he is afraid of many things. Having little
to desire and many things to be afraid of will make a man most unhappy which is
generally case with kings. Kings occupy the highest position in their
respective kingdoms; so they have hardly any desires. Having everything, there
is nothing that they can wish for. As a result, they feel melancholy or sad;
their heads are full of dangers and apprehensions; they became confused and
unable to think properly and clearly. For giving advice to kings, and to
support his arguments, Bacon has used many historical references. There are
many cases of kings who made many conquests in war and, who, having been unable
to go on winning military victories, became superstitious and melancholy. He
says that Alexander the Great, Dioclesian, and Charles V belong to this class
of kings. A king, who is accustomed to win battles, feels disappointed or
frustrated on finding that he cannot continue his career of conquests. For
Bacon, it is very difficult for a king to attain the state of mind in which he can
govern his kingdom successfully. A king must learn to blend the qualities and
methods necessary for ruling. A king must combine harshness with mildness. Not
to make abrupt changes in his mood from harshness to mildness or vice versa.
Nero was an emperor who met his downfall because of his fault.
Bacon, in this essay, tries to offer some valuable advice and suggestion to kings who are dealt with their dealings with their neighbours, their wives, their children, their clergymen, their nobles, their merchants, their common people and soldiers. Concerning with neighboring countries, a king should be serious, watchful and alert. He should not allow any neighboring country to become more powerful than before through territorial expansion or through the expansion of trade. A king has the right to go to war with another king if the latter tries to become more powerful than before. E.g. King Henry VIII of England, Francis I of France, and Charles V of Spain maintained the balance of power among themselves in such way that none of them could become a source of danger to other. Besides, kings themselves have to beware of their wives. There were wives who did great cruelties to their husbands and some kings have suffered a lot due to the hostility of their wives. Bacon has given such cases as Livia who was responsible for the murder of her husband, Emperor Augustus. She poisoned her husband to promote the ambition of her lover, Sejanus. Roxolana brought about the destruction of the household of her husband, Solyman the Magnificent. Edward II of England was murdered as a result of an intrigue in which queen played a major role. Generally, there are two reasons for which the wives of kings intrigue against their husbands. Either they want to promote the chances of their own children to ascend the throne; or they develop illicit love affair with other men under whose influence they turn hostile to their husbands.
A
king also becomes victim of his suspicion about his sons as his sons are traitors.
This suspicion leads to disastrous consequences. Constantinus the Great destroyed
his son, Crispus, with the result that his other sons also met violent deaths. King
Philip of Macedonia destroyed his son Demetrius, but he himself subsequently died
of repentance. However, there have also been cases of sons openly revolting against
their fathers. In such cases, the fathers were justified in taking suitable
action against their sons. Selymus I openly revolted against his father, the
Sultan Bajazet II, and dethroned him in 1512. Similarly, the three sons of
Henry II, King of England, openly revolted against him. These sons were
Richard, Geoffrey and John. King also faces danger from priests. Kings should
be on their guard against them if they are proud or powerful. Anselmus and
Thomas Beckett, Archbishops of Canterbury, came into open conflict with their
kings. This danger to kings becomes greater when the priests get the support of
some foreign power.
Besides,
Bacon says that a king should keep the nobles at a distance though they should
not try to take away all their powers. A king will lose the goodwill of the merchants
if he imposes too many taxes on them. Excessive taxation leads to the stagnation
of trade, and a consequent loss of the public revenue. Soldiers pose a danger
to a king if they are united and if they are used to receiving monetary gifts like
those received by the bodyguard of the Roman emperors. Soldiers should be placed
under the command of several generals and they should not be spoilt by being given
monetary rewards. At the end of the essay, King is compared to a planet which keeps
constantly moving and therefore gets no rest. Planet is also held in high
respect because its movement influences human affairs for better or for worse.
A king too is held in high respect; he also gets no rest, and he too can do
good as well as evil to the people. A king should remember that he is a man;
and he should also remember that he is god or in the place of God. In other
words, a king should also not forget that he is human and can make mistakes.
But he should not forget that he is divine in as far as he can do a lot of
good.
Though
the essay is concerned with kings and the policies which they should follow, it
certainly throws light on human nature and enables us to appreciate the motives
which prompt the actions and policies of kings as also the actions of various categories
of people.
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