# Discourses on Livy — Character guide

> Key figures in Discourses on Livy by Niccolò Machiavelli.

- [Titus Livius](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/discourses_on_livy_se/characters/titus_livius.md): Roman historian whose work is the primary source for Machiavelli's Discourses.
- [Hannibal](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/discourses_on_livy_se/characters/hannibal.md): Carthaginian general who invaded Italy and is frequently cited as a military exemplar.
- [Appius Claudius](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/discourses_on_livy_se/characters/appius_claudius.md): Roman decemvir whose tyranny led to the death of Virginia.
- [Valerius Corvinus](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/discourses_on_livy_se/characters/valerius_corvinus.md): Roman consul and general known for his victory over the Gauls.
- [Fabius Maximus](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/discourses_on_livy_se/characters/fabius_maximus.md): Roman dictator who used delaying tactics against Hannibal.
- [Furius Camillus](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/discourses_on_livy_se/characters/furius_camillus.md): Roman general who saved Rome from the Gauls and reformed the army.
- [Piero Soderini](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/discourses_on_livy_se/characters/piero_soderini.md): Florentine Gonfalonier whose indecisiveness is criticized by Machiavelli.
- [Scipio](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/discourses_on_livy_se/characters/scipio.md): Roman general who defeated Hannibal at Zama, often contrasted with Hannibal.
- [Caesar](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/discourses_on_livy_se/characters/caesar.md): Roman dictator whose rise to power is analyzed as a threat to republican liberty.
- [Manlius Capitolinus](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/discourses_on_livy_se/characters/manlius_capitolinus.md): Roman patrician who saved the Capitol but was later executed for ambition.
- [Manlius Torquatus](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/discourses_on_livy_se/characters/manlius_torquatus.md): Roman dictator known for executing his own son for disobeying orders.
- [Philip of Macedon](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/discourses_on_livy_se/characters/philip_of_macedon.md): King of Macedon and father of Alexander, used as an example of cunning.
- [Claudius Nero](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/discourses_on_livy_se/characters/claudius_nero.md): Roman consul who defeated Hasdrubal at the Metaurus River.
- [Titus Manlius](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/discourses_on_livy_se/characters/titus_manlius.md): Roman consul who fought against the Latins and enforced strict discipline.
- [Pope Julius II](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/discourses_on_livy_se/characters/pope_julius_ii.md): Warrior pope who expanded papal territories through military campaigns.
- [Romulus](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/discourses_on_livy_se/characters/romulus.md): Founder and first king of Rome, exemplar of necessary violence in state-building.
- [Tarquin](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/discourses_on_livy_se/characters/tarquin.md): Last king of Rome whose tyranny led to the establishment of the Republic.
- [Alexander the Great](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/discourses_on_livy_se/characters/alexander_the_great.md): Macedonian conqueror whose empire-building is compared to Roman methods.
- [Decius](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/discourses_on_livy_se/characters/decius.md): Roman consul who sacrificed himself in battle to secure victory.
- [Agis](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/discourses_on_livy_se/characters/agis.md): Spartan king who attempted reform and was executed, discussed in political context.
- [Brutus](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/discourses_on_livy_se/characters/brutus.md): Founder of the Roman Republic who executed his own sons for conspiracy.
- [Numa](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/discourses_on_livy_se/characters/numa.md): Second king of Rome who established religious institutions and laws.
- [Girolamo Savonarola](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/discourses_on_livy_se/characters/girolamo_savonarola.md): Florentine friar and reformer whose prophecies and downfall are analyzed.
- [Cosimo de' Medici](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/discourses_on_livy_se/characters/cosimo_de_medici.md): Founder of the Medici political dynasty in Florence.
- [Antonio Giacomini](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/discourses_on_livy_se/characters/antonio_giacomini.md): Florentine military commander who failed to capture Pisa.
- [Lucius Quintius Cincinnatus](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/discourses_on_livy_se/characters/lucius_quintius_cincinnatus.md): Roman dictator who left his farm to save Rome and returned to farming.
- [Tullus Hostilius](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/discourses_on_livy_se/characters/tullus_hostilius.md): Third king of Rome known for his warlike nature and destruction of Alba.
- [Giovanpagolo Baglioni](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/discourses_on_livy_se/characters/giovanpagolo_baglioni.md): Perugian tyrant who failed to kill Pope Julius II when he had the chance.
- [Cyrus](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/discourses_on_livy_se/characters/cyrus.md): Founder of the Persian Empire, used as an example of virtuous princely conduct.
- [M. de Foix](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/discourses_on_livy_se/characters/m_de_foix.md): French commander who fought in Italy during the Italian Wars.
- [Giulio Belanti](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/discourses_on_livy_se/characters/giulio_belanti.md): Sienese nobleman involved in political conspiracies.
- [Selim](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/discourses_on_livy_se/characters/selim.md): Ottoman sultan who conquered Egypt and is cited as a modern tyrant.
- [Marius](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/discourses_on_livy_se/characters/marius.md): Roman general and consul whose military reforms and civil strife are discussed.
- [Piso](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/discourses_on_livy_se/characters/piso.md): Roman praetor whose conspiracy against Nero is mentioned.
- [Solon](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/discourses_on_livy_se/characters/solon.md): Athenian lawgiver whose reforms are compared to Roman institutions.
- [Titus Quintius Flamininus](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/discourses_on_livy_se/characters/titus_quintius_flamininus.md): Roman general who defeated Philip V of Macedon and proclaimed Greek freedom.
- [Coriolanus](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/discourses_on_livy_se/characters/coriolanus.md): Roman patrician who turned against Rome after being exiled.
- [Crassus](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/discourses_on_livy_se/characters/crassus.md): Roman general and triumvir who died fighting the Parthians.
- [Alfonso del Mutolo](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/discourses_on_livy_se/characters/alfonso_del_mutolo.md): Italian captain whose actions are cited as an example of military prudence.
- [Scaevinus](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/discourses_on_livy_se/characters/scaevinus.md): Roman senator involved in the Pisonian conspiracy against Nero.
- [Moses](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/discourses_on_livy_se/characters/moses.md): Biblical prophet and lawgiver, used as an example of a founder of a state.
- [Papirius Cursor](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/discourses_on_livy_se/characters/papirius_cursor.md): Roman dictator known for his harsh discipline and military success.
- [David](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/discourses_on_livy_se/characters/david.md): Biblical king of Israel, cited as an example of a ruler who rose from humble origins.
- [Horatius Cocles](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/discourses_on_livy_se/characters/horatius_cocles.md): Roman hero who single-handedly defended a bridge against the Etruscans.
- [Claudius Pontius](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/discourses_on_livy_se/characters/claudius_pontius.md): Samnite general who defeated the Romans at the Caudine Forks.
- [Spurius Papirius](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/discourses_on_livy_se/characters/spurius_papirius.md): Roman censor known for his strict moral reforms.
- [Spurius Posthumius](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/discourses_on_livy_se/characters/spurius_posthumius.md): Roman consul who surrendered to the Samnites at the Caudine Forks.
- [Pope Alexander VI](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/discourses_on_livy_se/characters/pope_alexander_vi.md): Borgia pope whose corrupt and ambitious rule is discussed.
- [Hanno](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/discourses_on_livy_se/characters/hanno.md): Carthaginian statesman who opposed Hannibal's war with Rome.
- [Plautianus](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/discourses_on_livy_se/characters/plautianus.md): Roman praetorian prefect under Septimius Severus, later executed.
- [Servius Tullius](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/discourses_on_livy_se/characters/servius_tullius.md): Sixth king of Rome who reformed the Roman constitution and army.
- [Marcus Antonius](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/discourses_on_livy_se/characters/marcus_antonius.md): Roman general and triumvir whose civil war against Octavian is noted.
- [Xenophon](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/discourses_on_livy_se/characters/xenophon.md): Greek historian and philosopher whose works on leadership are cited.
- [Perseus](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/discourses_on_livy_se/characters/perseus.md): Last king of Macedon, defeated by the Romans at Pydna.
- [Lycurgus](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/discourses_on_livy_se/characters/lycurgus.md): Spartan lawgiver whose constitution is praised by Machiavelli.
- [Clearchus](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/discourses_on_livy_se/characters/clearchus.md): Spartan general and tyrant of Heraclea, killed by conspirators.
- [Antonius Primus](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/discourses_on_livy_se/characters/antonius_primus.md): Roman general who fought for Vespasian in the Year of the Four Emperors.
- [Il Carmagnola](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/discourses_on_livy_se/characters/il_carmagnola.md): Italian condottiero who was executed by the Venetians for suspected treachery.
- [Pandolfo Petrucci](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/discourses_on_livy_se/characters/pandolfo_petrucci.md): Ruler of Siena known for his cunning and political manipulation.
- [Caracalla](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/discourses_on_livy_se/characters/caracalla.md): Roman emperor known for his cruelty and the murder of his brother Geta.
- [Marcus Menenius](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/discourses_on_livy_se/characters/marcus_menenius.md): Roman consul who negotiated with the plebeians during the secession.
- [Francesco Valori](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/discourses_on_livy_se/characters/francesco_valori.md): Florentine statesman and supporter of Savonarola, later killed by a mob.
- [Messer Giovanni Guicciardini](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/discourses_on_livy_se/characters/messer_giovanni_guicciardini.md): Florentine diplomat and historian, contemporary of Machiavelli.
- [Catiline](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/discourses_on_livy_se/characters/catiline.md): Roman conspirator whose failed rebellion against the Republic is discussed.
- [King Ferrando](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/discourses_on_livy_se/characters/king_ferrando.md): King of Naples whose political actions are analyzed.
- [Marcus Fabius](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/discourses_on_livy_se/characters/marcus_fabius.md): Roman consul who fought against the Veientines.
- [Calippus](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/discourses_on_livy_se/characters/calippus.md): Syracusan who betrayed and killed his friend Dion.
- [Cornelius Tacitus](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/discourses_on_livy_se/characters/cornelius_tacitus.md): Roman historian whose works on the emperors are cited by Machiavelli.
- [Themistocles](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/discourses_on_livy_se/characters/themistocles.md): Athenian general who built the navy and defeated the Persians at Salamis.
- [Pyrrhus](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/discourses_on_livy_se/characters/pyrrhus.md): King of Epirus who fought the Romans with costly victories.
- [Ottaviano Fregoso](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/discourses_on_livy_se/characters/ottaviano_fregoso.md): Doge of Genoa and condottiero during the Italian Wars.
- [Pausanias](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/discourses_on_livy_se/characters/pausanias.md): Spartan general who defeated the Persians at Plataea but later turned traitor.
- [Hippias](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/discourses_on_livy_se/characters/hippias.md): Athenian tyrant whose expulsion led to the establishment of democracy.
- [Varro](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/discourses_on_livy_se/characters/varro.md): Roman consul defeated by Hannibal at Cannae, criticized for rashness.
- [King Louis XII](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/discourses_on_livy_se/characters/king_louis_xii.md): French king who invaded Italy and is analyzed for his political mistakes.
- [Nicias](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/discourses_on_livy_se/characters/nicias.md): Athenian general whose cautiousness led to disaster in Sicily.
- [Lorenzo de' Medici](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/discourses_on_livy_se/characters/lorenzo_de_medici.md): Florentine ruler targeted in the Pazzi conspiracy.
- [Demetrius](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/discourses_on_livy_se/characters/demetrius.md): Macedonian king and general, son of Antigonus, known for sieges.
- [Antaeus](https://www.betterreads.online/discover/discourses_on_livy_se/characters/antaeus.md): Mythological giant who drew strength from the earth, defeated by Hercules.

HTML index: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/discourses_on_livy_se/characters