What was “Roman” about Roman Grand Strategy?

Abstract The study of Roman grand strategy often follows a binary debate that either makes grand claims for Roman strategic planning or discounts entirely the idea that the Romans had any form of strategic thinking. The following paper argues that these debates neglect what was distinctly Roman about Roman strategic thinking. Through looking to a case study of the Emperor Tiberius, this paper shows that Rome was driven by inter-elite competition and not by modern conceptions of national security. The paper therefore challenges ahistorical accounts of Roman warfare and concludes with exploring ways forward to better understand what was uniquely Roman about Roman strategic culture.