Animus in consulendo liber

Motto on the left wall at NATO headquarters in Brussels, 2013

Animus in consulendo liber (Latin: "A mind unfettered in deliberation") is the official motto of NATO,^[1] originating from The Conspiracy of Catiline (52, 21) by Roman historian Sallust where it was translated by Charles Anthon as "a mind unfettered in deliberation".^[2] The motto was chosen by the Dean of the NATO Council André de Staercke to reflect the spirit of consultation envisioned by the then-Secretary General of NATO Paul-Henri Spaak.^[1] De Staercke borrowed the quote when he recalled his visit to the Palace of the Chief Magistrate in San Gimignano, where "animus in consulendo liber" was engraved on the Magistrate's seat.^[1] The motto is presently displayed on the wall of the main Council Room at NATO headquarters in Brussels, behind the chairman's seat^[1] (with the New Latin letter U instead of V used in Classical Latin).

The motto's original context by Sallust, who cites Cato the Younger's address to the Roman Senate, is: "But there were other qualities which made them [our forefathers] great, which we do not possess at all: efficiency at home, a just rule abroad, in counsel an independent spirit free from guilt or passion" (Latin: "Sed alia fuere, quae illos magnos fecere, quae nobis nulla sunt: domi industria, foris iustum imperium, animus in consulendo liber, neque delicto neque lubidini obnoxius").^[3]

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