The late 1700s and early 1800s were a critical period in American history during which our newly independent nation was beginning to lay the foundation for the functioning of the country. At that time, America was in its infancy, and its crucial first steps would dictate how the nation would walk, run, or fall back. John Marshall, the fourth Chief Justice of the United States, was a very important and influential political figure whose decisions forever shaped the future of the American justice system. Like many other great political figures, much of John Marshall's influence can be attributed to timing; it appeared just as the United States Constitution was being created. John Marshall was born in Virginia in 1755 into a large family whose father was involved in local politics and whose mother was the cousin of Thomas Jefferson, who was later Marshall's opponent. After serving as an officer in the American Revolution, Marshall returned home in 1779 to become one of Virginia's most prominent lawyers. In 1782 he was elected a delegate to the Virginia assembly and later participated in the Virginia ratifying convention, at which he fiercely defended the new United States Constitution. Increasingly popular, John Marshall was elected to Congress in 1799 and, remaining loyal to the Federalist Party, he gave his full support to President John Adams, who appointed him Secretary of State in 1801 ("John Marshall"). In the election of 1800, also known as the "Revolution of 1800", Thomas Jefferson was elected, marking the end of the term of John Adams and the Federalist regime ("The Election of 1800"). After being defeated by Jefferson, Adams quickly appointed John Marshall as Chief Justice...... middle of paper ...... The Court saw some of the most controversial and unprecedented decisions ever made in American history. Lord Bryce described his global influence; “The Constitution seemed not so much to rise under his hands to its full stature, but rather to be gradually unveiled by him until it revealed itself in the harmonious perfection of the form which its authors had conceived” (Smith, “Maximum Justice”). The Supreme Court, under Marshall, assumed the vital role of interpreting specific clauses of the U.S. Constitution and enumerating the powers it granted to state and federal governments. He raised the status of the judiciary until it was in a position of power equal to that of the other two. Above all, John Marshall did everything in his power to achieve his most important goal: to strengthen and protect the "more perfect union" created by the United States Constitution.