More than all, and above all, Washington was master of himself.

Adams’s line elevates self-command as George Washington’s defining virtue—surpassing military talent, political judgment, or public renown. “Master of himself” points to disciplined restraint: the ability to govern temper, ambition, and impulse under pressure. In Washington’s case, that ideal is often associated with his controlled public demeanor, his willingness to subordinate personal desires to civic duty, and his capacity to relinquish power (most famously in resigning military command and later stepping down after the presidency). The phrasing also reflects a classical republican moral standard: the leader fit to rule others is first one who can rule himself.