john marshall

            The father of constitutional law, chief justice John Marshall played a pivotal role in the construction of democracy in the United States. Marshall was our nations fourth chief justice and is accredited with helping to establish the power of the United States Supreme Court and strongly enforcing constitutional law throughout the nation. Serving as a chief justice for 34 years, and presiding over 1000 cases, John Marshall was known for his intelligence, his courage in time of war, and his fairness in regard to Constitutional law. .
             Marshall was born on September 24, 1755 as the eldest son of Thomas and Mary Randolph Marshall. John was to become the oldest son of 15 children. At the age of ten John's father moved his family 30 miles to the town of Blue Ridge Mountains. Long before John had any real voice in the path of his future career, both John and his mother decided that he was to become a lawyer. It was because of this dream that the Marshall's filled their house with many books. While most families at this time did not even own a single book, the Marshall household contained several, literature such as the bible, Shakespeare, and Pope. By the age of 12 Marshall was able to write word for word Pope's moral essays and passages. Marshall grew to love poetry and literature. In essence, his childhood thirst for knowledge and willingness to learn laid the foundation for Marshall's education. (Compton's Encyclopedia 1991).
             John's early education came from a Scottish Minister who was being tried out by the local congregation. Then in 1772, John attended the Academy of Reverend Archibald Campbell. Most important of his early education, John attended the prestigious college of William and Mary for a period of six weeks in 1779. At William and Mary, John studied law and gained greater knowledge and desire to continue on his path to becoming a lawyer. It is said that Marshall took a philosophy class taught by Madison.