The one-eyed mercenary soldier Federico da Montefeltro, lord of Urbino between 1444 and 1482, was one of the most successful condottiere of the Italian Renaissance: renowned humanist, patron of the artist Piero della Francesca, and creator of one of the most celebrated libraries in Italy outside the Vatican. From 1460 until her early death in 1472 he was married to Battista, of the formidable Sforza family, their partnership apparently blissful. In the fine palace he built overlooking Urbino, Federico assembled a court regarded by many as representing a high point of Renaissance culture. For Baldassare Castiglione, Federico was la luce dell'Italia – 'the light of Italy'. Jane Stevenson's affectionate account of Urbino's flowering and decline casts revelatory light on patronage, politics and humanism in fifteenth-century Italy.

In September 1919 Gabriele D’Annunzio, successful poet and occasional politician, declared himself Commandante of the city of Fiume in modern-day Croatia. His intention – to establish a utopia based on his fascist and artistic ideals. It was the dramatic pinnacle to an outrageous career. Lucy Hughes-Hallett charts the controversial life of D’Annunzio, the debauched artist who became a national hero.

Notorious and often misunderstood, Niccolò Machiavelli's legacy has been shaped by his most famous work, The Prince. But was the man truly as sinister as his reputation suggests? Alexander Lee delves deep into Machiavelli's life, from his impoverished childhood and early abuse to his political triumphs and ultimate fall from grace. Through extensive research, Lee reveals surprising connections between Machiavelli's personal experiences and his influential philosophical works. Set against the backdrop of Renaissance Italy, this definitive biography transports readers into the turbulent world Machiavelli navigated, from the opulent halls of Florence to the Borgia pope's court and the dungeons of the Stinche prison.