The "Felix" Prince-Condottiero in Humanist Literature: The portrayal of Alfonso the Magnanimous’s "Felicitas"

This essay analyses the concept of "felicitas" as a political attribute associated to the figure of the prince and military leader in Italian Renaissance literature. This use of the complex idea of "felicitas", drawn from the classical tradition, appears especially in historiographical and political works devoted to the deeds of important rulers and condottieri and are informed by ideological implications. In particular, the chapter focuses on works produced in the context of the kingdom of Naples which can be considered as significant case studies: Bartolomeo Facio’s historical text on Alfonso of Aragon; his "De viris illustribus"; and Biondo Flavio’s works addressed to the Magnanimous. In this output, the political leader is celebrated, and at the same time legitimized, through the description of his successful and virtuous profile in the concrete historical dimension. The "felicitas" is seen as a fundamental attribute of this ideal image of ruler, becoming an inborn gift corresponding with a natural inclination towards success.