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Pietro Monte's Collectanea of Exercises and the Military Art, divided into three books

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Prologue to Pietro Monte's Books of Exercises and the Military Art, dedicated to Lord Galeazzo Sanseverino

Having often reflected on the weakness and frailty of human memory, and how whatever we commit to it today, it soon allows to vanish, I decided to write this compendium, so that some part of the activities or exercises that have been practiced among us could be more easily committed to memory.

This purpose readily accounts for the content and brevity of this text, and why I do not explain every particular in detail. If a person has some familiarity with these matters, it is enough for us to clear him a small path on his route: from there he can easily widen it to cover the entire subject. We should seek this kind of aid to memory from others when we lack it, and where we possess knowledge, we should put it in writing so that it should never be lost to posterity, guarding against the contingencies that often befall. Yet although the benefit may shine upon everyone, it is not distributed in equal measure, for a thing helps us more when we have more need of it.

We should harmonize physical skills with the intellect, for then we can more easily show the general and specific means that are suitable for men who use their powers of body and intellect. With those who rule or triumph by chance, their rise is usually the prelude to their utter downfall. So to avoid such disgraces, I will write down in a few words some matters that can be extrapolated to teach many exercises, also showing something of the complexions of men.

I will divide the exercises of this book into two parts.

Between these two I will discuss the complexions, and how to conduct things when we are going to engage in some physical contest.