La teoría de la simulación de Pedro de Ribadeneyra y el 'maquiavelismo de los antimaquiavélicos'

Pedro de Ribadeneyra proposed in his Treatise on the Christian Prince (1595) four cases in which the Christian ruler can use the simulation without resorting to lies. This has been interpreted by traditional historiography as a trait of Machiavellianism, that is, a concession to the politic utilitas in spite of the alleged religious morality of
christian politics. The article examines carefully Ribadeneyra's theory having in mind the notion of "Machiavellianism of the Anti-Machiavellianists”, as proposed in a seminal article by José Antonio Maravall. The conclusion remarks that the alleged Machiavellianism of Ribadeneyra's theory could well be explained alluding to the casuistic doctrines of equivocation and mental reservation, represented in Ribadeneyra's work by Martin de Azpilcueta. Talking about the Machiavellianism of this kind of doctrine requires a better founded argument than the mere use of Maravall's authority