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

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the South Caucasus * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the southeastern United States Georgia may also refer to: People and fictional characters * Georgia (name), a list of pe ...

. He represented the state in both the

House of Representatives House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entities. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often ...

and the

Senate A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

, and also served as the 33rd Governor of Georgia. As a supporter of the policies of President

Andrew Jackson Andrew Jackson (March 15, 1767 – June 8, 1845) was the seventh president of the United States from 1829 to 1837. Before Presidency of Andrew Jackson, his presidency, he rose to fame as a general in the U.S. Army and served in both houses ...

, Forsyth was appointed the 13th

United States Secretary of State The United States secretary of state (SecState) is a member of the executive branch of the federal government of the United States and the head of the U.S. Department of State. The secretary of state serves as the principal advisor to the ...

by Jackson in 1834, and continued in that role until 1841 during the presidency of

Martin Van Buren Martin Van Buren ( ; ; December 5, 1782 – July 24, 1862) was the eighth president of the United States, serving from 1837 to 1841. A primary founder of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he served as Attorney General o ...

. He also served as US Minister to Spain during the presidency of

James Monroe James Monroe ( ; April 28, 1758July 4, 1831) was an American Founding Father of the United States, Founding Father who served as the fifth president of the United States from 1817 to 1825. He was the last Founding Father to serve as presiden ...

Early life

Forsyth was born in

Fredericksburg, Virginia Fredericksburg is an Independent city (United States), independent city in Virginia, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 27,982. It is south of Washington, D.C., and north of Richmond, Virginia, R ...

. His father, Robert Forsyth, a Scottish immigrant, 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, daughter of Josiah Meigs, in 1801. One of his sons, John Forsyth, Jr., later became a newspaper editor.

Political life

Forsyth served in the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Artic ...

(1813–1818 and 1823–1827), the

United States Senate The United States Senate is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the upper house, with the United States House of Representatives, U.S. House of Representatives being the lower house. Together, the Senate and ...

(1818–1819 and 1829–1834), and as the 33rd Governor of Georgia (1827–1829). He was the

from 1834 until 1841. In this role he led the government's response to the '' Amistad'' case. He was a loyal follower of

and opposed John C. Calhoun in the issue of nullification. Forsyth was appointed as Secretary of State in reward for his efforts. He led the pro-removal reply to Theodore Frelinghuysen about the

Indian Removal Act The Indian Removal Act of 1830 was signed into law on May 28, 1830, by United States president Andrew Jackson. The law, as described by Congress, provided "for an exchange of lands with the Indians residing in any of the states or territories, ...

of 1830. He supported slavery and was a slaveholder himself.

Death and legacy

Forsyth died in Washington, D.C., and was buried in Congressional Cemetery.

Forsyth County, Georgia Forsyth County ( or ) is a County (United States), county in the Northeast Georgia, Northeast region of the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. Suburban and exurban in character, Forsyth County lies within the Metro Atlanta, Atlanta ...

Forsyth, Georgia Forsyth is a city in and the county seat of Monroe County, Georgia, United States.Forsyth
Georgia.gov The pop ...

, and Forsyth Park in Savannah are named for him. He died the day before his 61st birthday.

In popular culture

*In the 1997

Steven Spielberg Steven Allan Spielberg ( ; born December 18, 1946) is an American filmmaker. A major figure of the New Hollywood era and pioneer of the modern blockbuster, Spielberg is widely regarded as one of the greatest film directors of all time and is ...

movie, '' Amistad'', Forsyth was played by character actor David Paymer.

Notes

References

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External links

* *
Biography at Players in the Amistad Affair

Letter, 1825 Mar. 5, Washington, [D.C. to
/nowiki> G[eorge">.C. to">Letter, 1825 Mar. 5, Washington, [D.C. to
/nowiki> G[eorge/nowiki> M. Troup, [Governor of Georgia] / John Forsyth]
[Letter
/nowiki> 1826 June 15, Sand Hills, eorgia/nowiki> / John Forsyth]
[Letter
/nowiki> 1827 Dec 12, Milledgeville, Georgia, [to Governor">etter">[Letter
/nowiki> 1827 Dec 12, Milledgeville, Georgia, [to Governor/nowiki> of Tennessee, Sam[ue]l Houston / John Forsyth, Gov[ernor of Georgia]]
[Letter
/nowiki> 1830 Jan 24, Georgetown, District of Columbia o/nowiki> George R. Gilmer, Governor of Georgia / John Forsyth] , - , - , - , - , - , - , - , - , - , - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Forsyth, John (Georgia) 1780 births 1841 deaths Ambassadors of the United States to Spain Burials at the Congressional Cemetery Democratic Party United States senators from Georgia (U.S. state) Democratic-Republican Party United States senators Georgia (U.S. state) attorneys general Democratic Party governors of Georgia (U.S. state) Jackson administration cabinet members Democratic Party members of the Georgia House of Representatives Politicians from Fredericksburg, Virginia Princeton University alumni United States secretaries of state Van Buren administration cabinet members Democratic-Republican Party state governors of the United States 19th-century American diplomats Democratic-Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Georgia (U.S. state) Jacksonian members of the United States House of Representatives from Georgia (U.S. state) La Amistad Chairmen of the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations United States senators who owned slaves Members of the United States House of Representatives who owned slaves Meigs family 19th-century members of the United States House of Representatives 19th-century United States senators 19th-century members of the Georgia General Assembly