Preface: The Standard I Seek
I’ve had the unique experience of starting a company from scratch in the aerospace and defense market, growing it to be moderately successful — largely thanks to luck — and then running it into the ground — largely thanks to my own hubris.
When I reflect on that experience, I see that much of the failure came from what I’ve often called playing company. Just as children play house — imitating what they see their parents doing, without really understanding — I too was running my company by imitating others, letting decisions I didn’t fully understand guide my own.
Now, as I lead my second company — six years into what has begun to feel like an Odyssean voyage — I have stopped playing house and begun to look deep into history, searching the wisdom of the past to understand what is truly required of me. The road is long, but I keep walking, hoping one day to shoot the arrow through the axes, slay the suitors, and return to my rightful place.
One of the challenges I face is this: the young men who have chosen to follow me — who could go elsewhere — have entrusted me with their careers. What should I tell them to strive for? What is worthy of them? And what standard should I use to govern rank, promotion, compensation, responsibility, and power?
As I pondered these questions, I wanted to ensure that the guidance I give and the system I build fit hand in hand — that the guidance would map directly to promotion. I wanted to hold myself to the same standard I expect of them, and to craft something timeless — a standard that other organizations could also adopt.
This document is the result of that search. It is designed to be worthy of any age and equal to the challenges of ours. Let me also be clear: this is my synthesis, excavated from history, study, and reflection, through both my formal education and my informal education under mentors, self-study, and through experience and failure. I offer it to you not as one who has mastered it, but as one still learning — leaning on the wisdom of the past to illuminate the path forward.
This system is far from complete. It is a vision — a dream of what could be. Like all visions, its full details must be worked out through time, trial, and the wisdom of many hands. But it is a beginning, and it points the way.
With that, I offer you this standard — the March Lord — as the path I seek, and the one I commend to you: the education of a conqueror and steward for our time.
I. Introduction — The Lost Theory of the Educated Ruler
There was once a time — whether in the medieval universities of Europe, the studia humanitatis of the Renaissance, or the great colleges of Oxford and Cambridge — when education was understood not as a mere means to employment, but as the formation of a whole man. The goal was not information but formation. The archetype was the Renaissance Man — one who could speak well, reason clearly, govern wisely, and act decisively.
In that era, the curriculum was unified under a single, coherent vision: to shape men fit to rule. Grammar, rhetoric, and logic formed the trivium. Arithmetic, geometry, music, and astronomy made up the quadrivium. These disciplines were not arbitrary; they were seen as keys to unlocking the structure of reality and the soul’s ascent toward truth. To be educated meant to be equipped for dominion in service of the good.
But that vision has been lost.
II. The Collapse into Specialization and Fragmentation
The Industrial Revolution ushered in an age of unprecedented complexity — but also profound fragmentation. Education, once designed to produce generalists capable of leadership, was carved up into increasingly narrow disciplines. The university no longer formed statesmen — it credentialed technicians. The result is a civilization whose leaders lack the intellectual breadth, moral grounding, and systemic awareness necessary to govern.
In place of the Renaissance Man, we now elevate the specialist, who may know one domain deeply but understands little of how it integrates with the rest. Meanwhile, the true levers of power — technological, financial, legal, theological — require interdisciplinary vision. And yet few possess it.
The consequence is dire: power flows to those who understand the systems — regardless of whether they are wise, just, or even sane. Those in charge cannot comprehend the forces they nominally oversee. As the complexity of the modern world grows, so does the need for leaders who have been forged to rule.
III. The Problem — Inadequacy of Existing Models
Today’s elite institutions no longer produce the kind of men capable of stewarding a civilization. The fragmentation of knowledge has led to the abdication of governance by the generalist. Neither the humanities nor the technical fields alone can form those who must bear the burden of command. We lack a comprehensive model of education that can synthesize science, technology, governance, and soul.
The result is a crisis not merely of competency, but of sovereignty.
IV. The Answer — Restoration and the New Archetype
We must reclaim the classical ambition — but expand it. It is not enough to recover the liberal arts alone. We must go beyond the trivium and quadrivium to include modern systems, physical strength, moral formation, and practical command.
We must create a new model for our age — the March Lord — one who retains the Renaissance Man’s breadth and wisdom, but who is forged for the contested frontiers of a collapsing civilization.
In the age of Charlemagne and his successors, the March Lords (or margraves) were appointed to rule the borderlands — the marches — between the heart of civilization and the chaos beyond. Their duty was not merely to hold the line but to push it outward: to conquer, settle, defend, and build in places others feared to tread.
They combined the qualities of a general, a governor, and a pioneer — ruling with both sword and law, expanding civilization while defending it from barbarism.
Today, we find ourselves again on the margins — spiritual, cultural, and civilizational. What is needed now is a man who combines the Renaissance spirit with the March Lord’s readiness for conquest and stewardship at the frontier.
This paper proposes the Twelve Domains of Mastery as the foundation for that archetype — a standard to form the March Lords of our time.
The Twelve Domains of Mastery
1. Theology & Moral Philosophy
The Crown of the Curriculum
Why it matters:
Every civilization has a metaphysical foundation. The question is not whether we will be religious, but which religion will rule our assumptions. Theology provides the frame through which all other knowledge is interpreted. Moral philosophy builds the character and conscience necessary to wield power justly.
Formation goal:
Instills humility before God, clarity about good and evil, and the moral architecture necessary to govern. Without this, power becomes tyranny or technocracy.
Topics include:
Mythology, archetypes, and the supernatural worldview
Biblical canon and Christian doctrine
Natural law and virtue ethics
Classical and theological texts (Aquinas, Augustine, etc.)
Moral reasoning in public life
2. Political Philosophy & Statesmanship
The Discipline of Dominion
Why it matters:
Leadership without philosophical grounding is just managerialism. Statesmanship requires understanding the forms, limits, and ends of government—what it means to govern well.
Formation goal:
Trains the statesman to discern between rule and control, between sovereignty and servitude, and to know when to obey, resist, or command.
Topics include:
Plato, Aristotle, Cicero, Machiavelli, etc.
Monarchy, Tyranny, Aristocracy, Oligarchy, Polity, Democracy
Federalism, republicanism, subsidiarity
Just war theory and the theology of rule
The art of diplomacy and political prudence
3. Classical Rhetoric & Communication
The Art of Persuasion and Clarity
Why it matters:
Power unused is nothing—but power miscommunicated is chaos. Rhetoric is not mere flair; it is the lifeblood of leadership.
Formation goal:
Develops eloquence, brevity, persuasion, and the capacity to inspire, rebuke, or unite.
Topics include:
Grammar, logic, and classical rhetoric
Debate, homiletics, oratory
Strategic writing (essays, speeches, memos, doctrine)
Interpretation of sacred and mythic texts
4. History & Civilizational Memory
The Backbone of Judgment
Why it matters:
Those who do not remember the past are doomed to repeat it—or worse, to be manipulated by those who remember selectively.
Formation goal:
Cultivates pattern recognition, discernment, humility, and the ability to navigate recurring cycles of rise, decay, and restoration.
Topics include:
Rise and fall of empires
Church history and the West
Revolutions, reformations, and renaissance
Strategic and military history
5. Language, Literature & Culture
The Soul of a People
Why it matters:
Culture is downstream of cult, and language is upstream of thought. To rule is to steward identity.
Formation goal:
Enables leaders to grasp the symbolic dimension of rule, master the emotional landscape of a people, and participate in the transmission of meaning.
Topics include:
Latin, Greek, and modern languages
Great Books canon (epic, tragedy, novel, myth)
Poetics, storytelling, and symbolic narrative
Cultural criticism and restoration
6. Mathematics & First Principles
The Logic of the Universe
Why it matters:
Mathematics is the study of order itself. It builds disciplined thought, pattern awareness, and is foundational to the understanding of science, economics, and systems.
Formation goal:
Trains abstraction, proof, precision, and insight.
Topics include:
Algebra, calculus, discrete math
Statistics and probability
Logic and number theory
Mathematical philosophy
7. Natural Science & Physical Systems
The World As It Is
Why it matters:
To govern a civilization requires knowing how the physical world works—materials, energy, biology, chemistry, and the bounds of reality.
Formation goal:
Grants awe before creation, mastery of cause and effect, and the tools to assess technological proposals and environmental policies.
Topics include:
Physics (classical, modern, quantum)
Chemistry, biology, thermodynamics
Earth and space sciences
Systems ecology and environmental models
8. Engineering & Applied Technology
The Craft of Civilization
Why it matters:
A statesman of the modern world must understand the machines, infrastructures, and code that shape our lives.
Formation goal:
Instills practical understanding of built systems and the capacity to lead those who design and maintain them.
Topics include:
Systems/aerospace engineering
Energy systems, propulsion, and mechanics
Software systems, networks, and computing
Design, integration, and failure analysis
Engineering management
9. Economics, Trade & Finance
The Power of Exchange
Why it matters:
Governance detached from economics leads to collapse.
Formation goal:
Builds understanding of capital flows, incentives, risk, and the architecture of prosperity and collapse.
Topics include:
Micro and macroeconomics
Monetary theory and central banking
Trade, industry, and national accounts
Business models, entrepreneurial strategy, and organizational management
10. Law, Policy & Constitutional Order
The Architecture of Rule
Why it matters:
Power requires legitimacy. Legitimacy comes from law.
Formation goal:
Teaches legal thinking, constitutional structure, and policy mechanics.
Topics include:
Constitutional law and legal tradition
Administrative law and regulation
Policy analysis and strategic governance
Legal philosophy and jurisprudence
11. Leadership, Warfare & Strategic Command
The Test of Rule
Why it matters:
Crisis reveals character. Leadership in peace is not the same as command in war.
Formation goal:
Develops decision-making under pressure, moral courage, team building, and strategic foresight.
Topics include:
Organizational leadership and project command
Military theory and doctrine
Strategy, operations, and logistics
Crisis management and wartime leadership
12. Physical Fitness, Health & Embodied Discipline
The Temple of the Soul
Why it matters:
The body is not separate from the mind. Fitness cultivates discipline, energy, alertness, and honor.
Formation goal:
Forged vitality, willpower, and bodily stewardship.
Topics include:
Physical training and Sokol-inspired regimens
Nutrition, anatomy, and biological literacy
Holistic health and longevity
Sportsmanship and ritualized combat
Conclusion — A New Class of Leaders for a New Civilizational Mandate
We stand at the precipice of a world too complex to be ruled by the unformed. The collapse of cultural institutions, the rise of hyper-specialization, and the abdication of moral clarity have created a vacuum of leadership at every level of society. Into this void, we must summon a new kind of figure — not a mere manager or technician, but a March Lord: formed in soul, sharpened in mind, tempered in body, and commissioned in truth.
This is not nostalgia. It is a resurrection of the original idea behind true education — to form rulers fit to advance civilization at its margins. The twelve domains we have outlined do not represent twelve isolated disciplines, but twelve facets of one unified project: to know reality as it is, and to act within it as a steward and conqueror. These are not electives. They are obligations of any who would wield power responsibly.
Without Theology, power becomes tyrannical.
Without Politics, it becomes arbitrary.
Without Law, it becomes unaccountable.
Without Engineering, it becomes naive.
Without Rhetoric, it becomes silent.
Without History, it becomes amnesiac.
Without Mathematics, it becomes imprecise.
Without Science, it becomes superstitious.
Without Culture, it becomes sterile.
Without Economics, it becomes impoverished.
Without Strategy, it becomes fragile.
Without Fitness, it becomes weak.
Each domain, mastered in humility and honed in community, contributes to the formation of the complete man — one capable not just of surviving the modern world, but of leading it unflinchingly toward the good.
The March Lord must rise again. And like the last time, he will rise through an Order — shaped by trial, tested by time, and bound by oath.
The way is long, but the path is clear. To those who would rise: here is the standard — the education of a conqueror and steward. Walk it.
Thank you for reading. Stay tuned: in subsequent posts, I will share more about how we live and apply this standard within the Order of Thread and Thunder.