John Forsyth (politician)

John Forsyth
	John Forsyth
	;
13th United States Secretary of State
	In office; July 1, 1834 – March 3, 1841
President	Andrew Jackson; Martin Van Buren
Preceded by	Louis McLane
Succeeded by	Daniel Webster
Born	October 22, 1780; Fredericksburg, Virginia, U.S.
Died	October 21, 1841 (aged 60); Washington D.C., U.S.
Political party	Democratic
Spouse(s)	Clara Meigs Forsyth
Alma mater	College of New Jersey
Profession	Politician, Lawyer

John Forsyth, Sr. (October 22, 1780 – October 21, 1841) was a 19th century American politician from Georgia.

Forsyth was born in Fredericksburg, Virginia. His father Robert Forsyth was the first U.S. Marshal to be killed in the line of duty in 1794. He was an attorney who graduated from the College of New Jersey (now Princeton University) in 1799. He married Clara Meigs in 1801 or 1802. One of his sons, John Forsyth, Jr., later became a newspaper editor. He served in the United States House of Representatives (1813-1818 and 1823-1827), the United States Senate (1818-1819 and 1829-1834), and as the Governor of Georgia (1827-1829). He was the United States Secretary of State from 1834 until 1841. In this role he led the government's response to the Amistad case. He was a loyal follower of Andrew Jackson and opposed John C. Calhoun in the issue of nullification. Forsyth was appointed as Secretary of State in reward for his efforts. Led the pro-removal reply to Theodore Frelinghuysen about the Indian Removal Act of 1830. He supported slavery and was a slaveholder himself. He died in Washington, D.C., and was buried in Congressional Cemetery. Forsyth County, Georgia is named for him.

[edit] John Forsyth in popular culture

In the 1997 Steven Spielberg movie, Amistad, John Forsyth's character was played by American character actor David Paymer.

United States House of Representatives
Preceded by New seat from congressional apportionment	Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Georgia's At-large congressional district March 4, 1813 – November 23, 1818	Succeeded by Robert R. Reid
United States Senate
Preceded by George M. Troup	United States Senator (Class 2) from Georgia November 23, 1818 – February 17, 1819 Served alongside: Charles Tait	Succeeded by Freeman Walker
Preceded by John M. Berrien	United States Senator (Class 3) from Georgia November 9, 1829 – June 27, 1834 Served alongside: George Troup and John P. King	Succeeded by Alfred Cuthbert
Diplomatic posts
Preceded by George W. Erving	United States Minister to Spain May 18, 1819 – March 2, 1823	Succeeded by Hugh Nelson
Political offices
Preceded by George M. Troup	Governor of Georgia 1827 – 1829	Succeeded by George R. Gilmer
Preceded by Louis McLane	United States Secretary of State Served Under: Andrew Jackson, Martin Van Buren July 1, 1834 – March 3, 1841	Succeeded by Daniel Webster

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13th United States Secretary of State
John Forsyth

In office July 1, 1834 – March 3, 1841
President	Andrew Jackson Martin Van Buren
Preceded by	Louis McLane
Succeeded by	Daniel Webster

Born	October 22, 1780(1780-10-22) Fredericksburg, Virginia, U.S.
Died	October 21, 1841 (aged 60) Washington D.C., U.S.
Political party	Democratic
Spouse(s)	Clara Meigs Forsyth
Alma mater	College of New Jersey
Profession	Politician, Lawyer