John Marshall and his times: A Virginia lawyer and southern Federalist in the early republic, 1755-1801

John Marshall was America's most influential Chief Justice, but his life before his appointment has not been adequately examined on its own terms and for how it influenced his judicial leadership and political and economic ideas. Marshall spent his childhood on the Virginia frontier, the eldest son of Thomas Marshall, an intelligent and ambitious planter who strongly influenced his intellectual development and exposed him to Virginia's political and legal institutions. During the Revolution, Marshall served in the militia and the Continental Line and fought at several important battles, including Brandywine, Germantown, and Monmouth Courthouse. He served in the Army's legal corps, endured the Valley Forge winter with George Washington, and left the war a committed nationalist.;In the early 1780s he studied law under George Wythe at William and Mary and began a practice that would make him one of Virginia's most influential lawyers. Representing mostly planters and merchants in civil cases, he developed the style of argument--penetrating analysis, concise language, and powerful logic--that he would use in his Supreme Court opinions. He entered Virginia politics as an assemblyman and was a key advocate--especially in the state ratifying convention--of a stronger central government. Marshall also was a fixture in Richmond's civic and social life and enjoyed a happy though sometimes stressful marriage to Mary "Polly" Ambler.;Marshall became the state's most prominent Federalist in the 1790s. He worked hard on behalf of Hamilton's fiscal program and the Jay Treaty and tried to check French influence in American politics. Marshall speculated in western lands and purchased a large portion of the Fairfax lands after persistent and astute maneuvers over twenty years.;Marshall displayed keen realism and strong character in rejecting French blandishments during the XYZ mission. He rode a surge of nationalism into his first national office as a congressman from the Richmond area. As the Federalists' floor leader in the House of Representatives, he failed to keep the Federalists from splitting into pro- and anti-Adams factions. President Adams rewarded Marshall for his loyalty and hard work with the Chief Justiceship. Marshall could not turn down this opportunity to shape the nation's constitutional system.