He wasn’t even trying to be promoted, either. George Washington never wanted to be president - people had to convince him after voting unanimously for him.
It’s not so much about power - it’s generally agreed that Washington was very aware of the potential judgement of future generations, and made significant efforts, in that vein, to give a performance that they would regard positively. In other words, he wanted to be remembered as a hero - and as far as motivations for being less shitty than one’s peers go, there are definitely worse ones to be had.
He wasn’t even trying to be promoted, either. George Washington never wanted to be president - people had to convince him after voting unanimously for him.
It’s not so much about power - it’s generally agreed that Washington was very aware of the potential judgement of future generations, and made significant efforts, in that vein, to give a performance that they would regard positively. In other words, he wanted to be remembered as a hero - and as far as motivations for being less shitty than one’s peers go, there are definitely worse ones to be had.