Those who strive to obtain the good graces of a prince are accustomed to come before him with such things as they hold most
precious, or in which they see him take most delight; whence one often sees horses, arms, cloth of gold, precious stones, and similar
ornaments presented to princes, worthy of their greatness.
Desiring therefore to present myself to your Magnificence with some testimony of my devotion towards you, I have not found
among my possessions anything which I hold more dear than, or value so much as, the knowledge of the actions of great men,
acquired by long experience in contemporary affairs, and a continual study of antiquity; which, having reflected upon it with great
and prolonged diligence, I now send, digested into a little volume, to your Magnificence.
And although I may consider this work unworthy of your countenance, nevertheless I trust much to your benignity that it may be