The art of grand strategy is often treated as an exercise in power projection, deterrence, and securing national interests in an anarchic international order. Yet, the great thinkers of the Western tradition provide a deeper moral and philosophical framework for thinking about statecraft.

Augustine of Hippo and Thomas Aquinas, drawing on the classical tradition, particularly Plato, developed an enduring vision of virtue that should inform our understanding of leadership and strategy. Their articulation of the cardinal virtues — prudence, justice, fortitude, and temperance — offers a timeless lens through which to frame and evaluate grand strategy.

Each of these virtues plays a role in crafting a sound approach to foreign policy, but temperance stands out as the most vital in a world where great powers risk overextension, unnecessary conflicts, and countless other self-inflicted wounds ultimately grounded in hubris and the desire for primacy.

A grand strategy of restraint, rooted in the cardinal virtues as understood by Augustine and Aquinas, provides a sustainable and morally coherent alternative to the excesses of primacy and other hubristic temptations. By analyzing each virtue’s relevance to grand strategy, we can see how restraint emerges not only as an ethical pathway but as a practical approach to strategy too.