American Judiciary, Part 6: The Nationalist from Virginia
In 1780, John Marshall spent just six short weeks studying law under George Wythe at the College of William and Mary before leaving school and obtaining his license to practice law in the state of Virginia. Within a few years, Marshall’s intelligence and charm had established him as one of the finest attorneys in Richmond. He was elected to the Virginia House of Burgesses and became one of the leading conservatives in the state and helped lead the fight in Virginia to ratify the Constitution. By 1798, Marshall began a run of nearly forty years of continuous service to his country, during which this devoted Patriot served in all three branches of government, one of only a handful of men to ever do so.
Tom Hand, creator and publisher of Americana Corner, explores John Marshall’s path to become chief justice of the Supreme Court, an appointment John Adams called “the proudest act of my life,” and why it still matters today.
Images courtesy of the New York Public Library, Encyclopedia Virginia, Metropolitan Museum of Art, National Portrait Gallery - Smithsonian Institution, National Gallery of Art, Library of Congress, Wikimedia.
John Marshall is perhaps the most impactful and influential man in American history who was never president. Almost single handedly, John Marshall created our national judiciary and established it as a branch of government co-equal to the legislative and executive branches.