Chief justice of the United States from 1801 to 1835

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Marshall</span>

John Marshall

<p><b>John Marshall</b> (September 24, 1755<span>&nbsp;</span><span>–</span><span> </span>July 6, 1835) was an American politician, lawyer, and <a href="/en/Founding_Fathers_of_the_United_States" title="Founding Fathers of the United States" class="wl">Founding Father</a> who served as the fourth <a href="/en/Chief_justice_of_the_United_States" title="Chief justice of the United States" class="mw-redirect wl">chief justice of the United States</a> from 1801 until his death in 1835. He remains the <a href="/en/List_of_Justices_of_the_Supreme_Court_of_the_United_States_by_time_in_office" title="List of Justices of the Supreme Court of the United States by time in office" class="mw-redirect wl">longest-serving chief justice and fourth-longest serving justice</a> in the history of the <a href="/en/U.S._Supreme_Court" title="U.S. Supreme Court" class="mw-redirect wl">U.S. Supreme Court</a>, and is widely regarded as one of the most influential justices ever to serve. Prior to joining the court, Marshall briefly served as both the <a href="/en/U.S._secretary_of_state" title="U.S. secretary of state" class="mw-redirect wl">U.S. secretary of state</a> under President <a href="/en/John_Adams" title="John Adams" class="wl">John Adams</a>, and a representative, in the <a href="/en/United_States_House_of_Representatives" title="United States House of Representatives" class="wl">U.S. House of Representatives</a> from <a href="/en/Virginia" title="Virginia" class="wl">Virginia</a>, thereby making him one of the few Americans to serve on all <a href="/en/Federal_government_of_the_United_States" title="Federal government of the United States" class="wl">three branches of the United States federal government.</a></p>

<div class="shortdescription nomobile noexcerpt noprint searchaux" style="display:none" about="#mwt1">Chief justice of the United States from 1801 to 1835</div>
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<style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1066479718" typeof="mw:Extension/templatestyles mw:Transclusion">.mw-parser-output .infobox-subbox{padding:0;border:none;margin:-3px;width:auto;min-width:100%;font-size:100%;clear:none;float:none;background-color:transparent}.mw-parser-output .infobox-3cols-child{margin:auto}.mw-parser-output .infobox .navbar{font-size:100%}body.skin-minerva .mw-parser-output .infobox-header,body.skin-minerva .mw-parser-output .infobox-subheader,body.skin-minerva .mw-parser-output .infobox-above,body.skin-minerva .mw-parser-output .infobox-title,body.skin-minerva .mw-parser-output .infobox-image,body.skin-minerva .mw-parser-output .infobox-full-data,body.skin-minerva .mw-parser-output .infobox-below{text-align:center}</style><div class='mobile-collapse'><header class="mobile-collapse-header mobile-collapse-btn"><b>Quick facts: John Marshall, 4th Chief Justice of the Unite...</b> <span class='arrow'>▼</span></header> <table class="infobox vcard mobile-collapse-element"><tbody><tr><th colspan="2" class="infobox-above" style="font-size: 100%;"><div class="fn" style="font-size:125%;">John Marshall</div></th></tr><tr><td colspan="2" class="infobox-image"><span class="mw-default-size"><a href="/en/File:John_Marshall_by_Henry_Inman,_1832.jpg" class="mw-file-description image media-thumb" data-hash="File:John_Marshall_by_Henry_Inman,_1832.jpg"><img loading="lazy" src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/fe/John_Marshall_by_Henry_Inman%2C_1832.jpg/220px-John_Marshall_by_Henry_Inman%2C_1832.jpg" decoding="async" data-file-width="1059" data-file-height="1312" data-file-type="bitmap" height="273" width="220" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/fe/John_Marshall_by_Henry_Inman%2C_1832.jpg/330px-John_Marshall_by_Henry_Inman%2C_1832.jpg 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/fe/John_Marshall_by_Henry_Inman%2C_1832.jpg/440px-John_Marshall_by_Henry_Inman%2C_1832.jpg 2x" alt="John_Marshall_by_Henry_Inman%2C_1832.jpg"></a></span><div class="infobox-caption" style="line-height:normal;padding-top:0.2em;">Portrait by <a href="/en/Henry_Inman_(painter)" title="Henry Inman (painter)" class="wl">Henry Inman</a>, <abbr>c.</abbr> 1832</div></td></tr><tr><td colspan="2" class="infobox-full-data"></td></tr><tr><th colspan="2" class="infobox-header notheme" style="background:lavender;line-height:normal;padding:0.2em;">4th <a href="/en/Chief_Justice_of_the_United_States" title="Chief Justice of the United States" class="wl">Chief Justice of the United States</a></th></tr><tr><td colspan="2" class="infobox-full-data" style="border-bottom:none"><span class="nowrap"><b>In office</b></span><br>February 4, 1801<span>&nbsp;</span>–<span> </span>July 6, 1835<span class="mw-ref reference" id="cite_ref-1"><a href="#cite_note-1" style="counter-reset: mw-Ref 1;"><span class="mw-reflink-text">[1]</span></a></span></td><style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1066479718" typeof="mw:Extension/templatestyles"></style></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label" style="text-align:left"><span class="nowrap">Nominated by</span></th><td class="infobox-data"><a href="/en/John_Adams" title="John Adams" class="wl">John Adams</a></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label" style="text-align:left"><span class="nowrap">Preceded by</span></th><td class="infobox-data"><a href="/en/Oliver_Ellsworth" title="Oliver Ellsworth" class="wl">Oliver Ellsworth</a></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label" style="text-align:left"><span class="nowrap">Succeeded by</span></th><td class="infobox-data"><a href="/en/Roger_B._Taney" title="Roger B. Taney" class="wl">Roger B. Taney</a></td><style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1066479718" typeof="mw:Extension/templatestyles"></style></tr><tr><th colspan="2" class="infobox-header notheme" style="background:lavender;line-height:normal;padding:0.2em;">4th <a href="/en/United_States_Secretary_of_State" title="United States Secretary of State" class="wl">United States Secretary of State</a></th></tr><tr><td colspan="2" class="infobox-full-data" style="border-bottom:none"><span class="nowrap"><b>In office</b></span><br>June 13, 1800<span>&nbsp;</span>–<span> </span>March 4, 1801</td><style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1066479718" typeof="mw:Extension/templatestyles"></style></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label" style="text-align:left">President</th><td class="infobox-data"><a href="/en/John_Adams" title="John Adams" class="wl">John Adams</a></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label" style="text-align:left"><span class="nowrap">Preceded by</span></th><td class="infobox-data"><a href="/en/Timothy_Pickering" title="Timothy Pickering" class="wl">Timothy Pickering</a></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label" style="text-align:left"><span class="nowrap">Succeeded by</span></th><td class="infobox-data"><a href="/en/James_Madison" title="James Madison" class="wl">James Madison</a></td><style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1066479718" typeof="mw:Extension/templatestyles"></style></tr><tr><th colspan="2" class="infobox-header notheme" style="background:lavender;line-height:normal;padding:0.2em;">Member of the <span style="display: inline-block;"><a href="/en/United_States_House_of_Representatives" title="United States House of Representatives" class="wl">U.S.<span> </span>House<span> </span>of<span> </span>Representatives</a></span><br>from <a href="/en/Virginia" title="Virginia" class="wl">Virginia</a>'s <span data-sort-value="Virginia13&nbsp;!"><a href="/en/Virginia's_13th_congressional_district" title="Virginia's 13th congressional district" class="wl">13th</a></span> district</th></tr><tr><td colspan="2" class="infobox-full-data" style="border-bottom:none"><span class="nowrap"><b>In office</b></span><br>March 5, 1799<span>&nbsp;</span>–<span> </span>June 6, 1800</td><style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1066479718" typeof="mw:Extension/templatestyles"></style></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label" style="text-align:left"><span class="nowrap">Preceded by</span></th><td class="infobox-data"><a href="/en/John_Clopton" title="John Clopton" class="wl">John Clopton</a></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label" style="text-align:left"><span class="nowrap">Succeeded by</span></th><td class="infobox-data"><a href="/en/Littleton_Waller_Tazewell" title="Littleton Waller Tazewell" class="wl">Littleton Tazewell</a></td></tr><tr style="display:none"><td colspan="2">
</td></tr><tr><th colspan="2" class="infobox-header notheme" style="background:lavender">Personal details</th></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label">Born</th><td class="infobox-data"><span style="display:none">(<span class="bday">1755-09-24</span>)</span>September 24, 1755<br><a href="/en/Germantown,_Virginia" title="Germantown, Virginia" class="wl">Germantown</a>, <a href="/en/Colony_of_Virginia" title="Colony of Virginia" class="wl">Virginia Colony</a>, <a href="/en/British_America" title="British America" class="wl">British America</a></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label">Died</th><td class="infobox-data">July 6, 1835<span style="display:none">(1835-07-06)</span> (aged<span>&nbsp;</span>79)<br><a href="/en/Philadelphia" title="Philadelphia" class="wl">Philadelphia</a>, <a href="/en/Pennsylvania" title="Pennsylvania" class="wl">Pennsylvania</a>, U.S.</td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label">Resting place</th><td class="infobox-data label"><a href="/en/Shockoe_Hill_Cemetery" title="Shockoe Hill Cemetery" class="wl">Shockoe Hill Cemetery</a></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label">Political party</th><td class="infobox-data"><a href="/en/Federalist_Party" title="Federalist Party" class="wl">Federalist</a></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label">Spouse</th><td class="infobox-data">Mary Willis Ambler</td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label">Children</th><td class="infobox-data">10, including <a href="/en/Thomas_Marshall_(Virginia_politician,_born_1784)" title="Thomas Marshall (Virginia politician, born 1784)" class="wl">Thomas</a> and <a href="/en/Edward_Carrington_Marshall" title="Edward Carrington Marshall" class="wl">Edward</a></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label">Education</th><td class="infobox-data"><a href="/en/College_of_William_&_Mary" title="College of William &amp; Mary" class="wl">College of William &amp; Mary</a></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label">Signature</th><td class="infobox-data"><span><a href="/en/File:John_Marshall_Signature.svg" class="mw-file-description image media-thumb" title="John Marshall's signature" data-hash="File:John_Marshall_Signature.svg"><img loading="lazy" alt="John_Marshall_Signature.svg" src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/ec/John_Marshall_Signature.svg/128px-John_Marshall_Signature.svg.png" decoding="async" data-file-width="208" data-file-height="78" data-file-type="drawing" height="48" width="128" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/ec/John_Marshall_Signature.svg/192px-John_Marshall_Signature.svg.png 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/ec/John_Marshall_Signature.svg/256px-John_Marshall_Signature.svg.png 2x"></a></span></td></tr><tr><th colspan="2" class="infobox-header notheme" style="background:lavender">Military service</th></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label">Allegiance</th><td class="infobox-data"><span class="flagicon"><span class="mw-image-border"><span><img loading="lazy" alt="Flag_of_the_United_States_%281777%E2%80%931795%29.svg" src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/19/Flag_of_the_United_States_%281777%E2%80%931795%29.svg/23px-Flag_of_the_United_States_%281777%E2%80%931795%29.svg.png" decoding="async" data-file-width="512" data-file-height="269" data-file-type="drawing" height="12" width="23" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/19/Flag_of_the_United_States_%281777%E2%80%931795%29.svg/35px-Flag_of_the_United_States_%281777%E2%80%931795%29.svg.png 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/19/Flag_of_the_United_States_%281777%E2%80%931795%29.svg/46px-Flag_of_the_United_States_%281777%E2%80%931795%29.svg.png 2x"></span></span><span>&nbsp;</span></span><a href="/en/United_States" title="United States" class="wl">United States</a></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label">Branch/service</th><td class="infobox-data"><a href="/en/Continental_Army" title="Continental Army" class="wl">Continental Army</a></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label">Years<span>&nbsp;</span>of service</th><td class="infobox-data">1775–1782</td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label">Rank</th><td class="infobox-data">Captain</td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label">Battles/wars</th><td class="infobox-data"><a href="/en/American_Revolutionary_War" title="American Revolutionary War" class="wl">American Revolutionary War</a></td></tr><tr><td colspan="2" class="infobox-below" style="border-top: 1px solid right; font-size: 95%"><div></div></td></tr></tbody></table> <footer class='mobile-collapse-footer mobile-collapse-btn'><b>Close</b> <span class='arrow'>▲</span></footer></div>
<p>Marshall was born in <a href="/en/Germantown,_Virginia" title="Germantown, Virginia" class="wl">Germantown</a> in the <a href="/en/Colony_of_Virginia" title="Colony of Virginia" class="wl">Colony of Virginia</a> in 1755. After the outbreak of the <a href="/en/American_Revolutionary_War" title="American Revolutionary War" class="wl">American Revolutionary War</a>, he joined the <a href="/en/Continental_Army" title="Continental Army" class="wl">Continental Army</a>, serving in numerous battles. During the later stages of the war, he was admitted to the state bar and won election to the <a href="/en/Virginia_House_of_Delegates" title="Virginia House of Delegates" class="wl">Virginia House of Delegates</a>. Marshall favored the ratification of the <a href="/en/U.S._Constitution" title="U.S. Constitution" class="mw-redirect wl">U.S. Constitution</a>, and he played a major role in Virginia's ratification of that document. At the request of President Adams, Marshall traveled to France in 1797 to help bring an end to attacks on American shipping. In what became known as the <a href="/en/XYZ_Affair" title="XYZ Affair" class="wl">XYZ Affair</a>, the government of France refused to open negotiations unless the United States agreed to pay bribes. After returning to the United States, Marshall won election to the <a href="/en/U.S._House_of_Representatives" title="U.S. House of Representatives" class="mw-redirect wl">U.S. House of Representatives</a> and emerged as a leader of the <a href="/en/Federalist_Party" title="Federalist Party" class="wl">Federalist Party</a> in Congress. He was appointed secretary of state in 1800 after a cabinet shake-up, becoming an important figure in the Adams administration.</p>

<p>In 1801, Adams appointed Marshall to the Supreme Court. Marshall quickly emerged as the key figure on the court, due in large part to his personal influence with the other justices. Under his leadership, the court moved away from <i><a href="/en/Seriatim" title="Seriatim" class="wl">seriatim</a></i> opinions, instead issuing a single majority opinion that elucidated a clear rule. The 1803 case of <i><a href="/en/Marbury_v._Madison" title="Marbury v. Madison" class="wl">Marbury v. Madison</a></i> presented the first major case heard by the <a href="/en/Marshall_Court" title="Marshall Court" class="wl">Marshall Court</a>. In his opinion for the court, Marshall upheld the principle of <a href="/en/Judicial_review" title="Judicial review" class="wl">judicial review</a>, whereby courts could strike down federal and state laws if they conflicted with the Constitution. Marshall's holding avoided direct conflict with the executive branch, which was led by <a href="/en/Democratic-Republican" title="Democratic-Republican" class="mw-redirect wl">Democratic-Republican</a> President <a href="/en/Thomas_Jefferson" title="Thomas Jefferson" class="wl">Thomas Jefferson</a>. By establishing the principle of judicial review while avoiding an inter-branch confrontation, Marshall helped implement the principle of <a href="/en/Separation_of_powers" title="Separation of powers" class="wl">separation of powers</a> and cement the position of the American judiciary as an independent and co-equal branch of government.</p>

<p>After 1803, many of the major decisions issued by the Marshall Court confirmed the supremacy of the federal government and the federal Constitution over the states. In <i><a href="/en/Fletcher_v._Peck" title="Fletcher v. Peck" class="wl">Fletcher v. Peck</a></i> and <i><a href="/en/Dartmouth_College_v._Woodward" title="Dartmouth College v. Woodward" class="wl">Dartmouth College v. Woodward</a></i>, the court invalidated state actions because they violated the <a href="/en/Contract_Clause" title="Contract Clause" class="wl">Contract Clause</a>. The court's decision in <i><a href="/en/McCulloch_v._Maryland" title="McCulloch v. Maryland" class="wl">McCulloch v. Maryland</a></i> upheld the constitutionality of the <a href="/en/Second_Bank_of_the_United_States" title="Second Bank of the United States" class="wl">Second Bank of the United States</a> and established the principle that the states could not tax federal institutions. The cases of <i><a href="/en/Martin_v._Hunter's_Lessee" title="Martin v. Hunter's Lessee" class="wl">Martin v. Hunter's Lessee</a></i> and <i><a href="/en/Cohens_v._Virginia" title="Cohens v. Virginia" class="wl">Cohens v. Virginia</a></i> established that the Supreme Court could hear appeals from state courts in both civil and criminal matters. Marshall's opinion in <i><a href="/en/Gibbons_v._Ogden" title="Gibbons v. Ogden" class="wl">Gibbons v. Ogden</a></i> established that the <a href="/en/Commerce_Clause" title="Commerce Clause" class="wl">Commerce Clause</a> bars states from restricting navigation. In the case of <i><a href="/en/Worcester_v._Georgia" title="Worcester v. Georgia" class="wl">Worcester v. Georgia</a></i>, Marshall held that the Georgia criminal statute that prohibited non-<a href="/en/Native_Americans_in_the_United_States" title="Native Americans in the United States" class="wl">Native Americans</a> from being present on Native American lands without a license from the state was unconstitutional. John Marshall died of natural causes in 1835, and <a href="/en/Andrew_Jackson" title="Andrew Jackson" class="wl">Andrew Jackson</a> appointed <a href="/en/Roger_Taney" title="Roger Taney" class="mw-redirect wl">Roger Taney</a> as his successor.</p>



John Marshall was an American politician, lawyer, and Founding Father who served as the fourth chief justice of the United States from 1801 until his death in 1835. He remains the longest-serving chief justice and fourth-longest serving justice in the history of the U.S. Supreme Court, and is widely regarded as one of the most influential justices ever to serve. Prior to joining the court, Marshall briefly served as both the U.S. secretary of state under President John Adams, and a representative, in the U.S. House of Representatives from Virginia, thereby making him one of the few Americans to serve on all three branches of the United States federal government. Marshall was born in Germantown in the Colony of Virginia in 1755. After the outbreak of the American Revolutionary War, he joined the Continental Army, serving in numerous battles. During the later stages of the war, he was admitted to the state bar and won election to the Virginia House of Delegates. Marshall favored the ratification of the U.S. Constitution, and he played a major role in Virginia's ratification of that document. At the request of President Adams, Marshall traveled to France in 1797 to help bring an end to attacks on American shipping. In what became known as the XYZ Affair, the government of France refused to open negotiations unless the United States agreed to pay bribes. After returning to the United States, Marshall won election to the U.S. House of Representatives and emerged as a leader of the Federalist Party in Congress. He was appointed secretary of state in 1800 after a cabinet shake-up, becoming an important figure in the Adams administration. 