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US Supreme Court:

John Rutledge

(b. Charleston, S.C., ca. Sep. 1739; d. Charleston, 21 June 1800; interred St. Michael's churchyard, Charleston); associate justice, 1789–1791; chief justice (unconfirmed), 1795. Born into wealth and privilege, John Rutledge was one of seven children born to Dr. John Rutledge and Sarah Hext. Rutledge studied law between 1755 and 1760, first with his uncle, Andrew Rutledge, and James Parson, and then in London at the Middle Temple. Upon his return to South Carolina in 1761 he enjoyed immediate and continuing success as a lawyer and politician, becoming a leader of the bar and an influential member of the general assembly. He also served as a delegate to the Stamp Act Congress, the Continental Congresses, and as governor of the newly constituted state of South Carolina. He helped write the U.S. Constitution in 1787 and supported its ratification.

Washington seriously considered appointing Rutledge, whom he had known and admired since 1775, as the first chief justice of the United States but instead appointed him as an associate justice on 24 September 1789; the Senate confirmed him two days later. Apparently somewhat miffed at not being named chief justice, exhausted by the duties of riding his federal circuit, and bored by the Court's inactivity, Rutledge resigned his justiceship on 5 March 1791 in order to accept appointment as chief justice of the South Carolina Court of Common Pleas. His initial service on the U.S. Supreme Court essentially had amounted to nothing since the Court had heard no cases during his brief tenure.

In June 1795, upon notice of John Jay's election as governor of New York, Rutledge solicited Washington for the office of chief justice of the Supreme Court. On 1 July Washington replied that he would happily appoint Rutledge to his desired post and that a commission to that office awaited his arrival in Philadelphia. Rutledge arrived in the temporary capital in time to preside over the Court at its August term. He participated in two cases, the first being United States v. Peters (1795) in which the Court issued a writ of prohibition forbidding a federal district judge from hearing a prize case involving a ship owned by the French republic on the grounds that the property of a sovereign nation was immune from such judicial proceedings. In Talbot v. Janson (1795), Rutledge, in his only opinion delivered as a member of the Supreme Court, joined in the Court's decision that restored a captured Dutch ship to its owners because the capturing privateer had been illegally commissioned.

Rutledge's nomination as chief justice was in extreme jeopardy even before Washington submitted it to the Senate. On 16 July 1795 Rutledge presided over a meeting in Charleston protesting the Senate's ratification of Jay's Treaty. Not content simply to lead the meeting, Rutledge delivered a lengthy harangue against the treaty and urged the president not to sign it. Outraged by his opposition to Jay's Treaty, a cornerstone of the administration's diplomacy, and concerned by the reports of his insanity, the Federalist majority in the Senate voted against Rutledge's nomination on 15 December 1795 by a vote of 14 to 10 (see Nominations, Controversial). Shortly after his rejection, Rutledge, who had been depressed since the death of his wife in 1792, attempted suicide by jumping off a wharf into Charleston Bay. He spent most of the remainder of his life as a recluse.

See also Nominees, Rejection of.

— Robert M. Ireland

 
 
Biography: John Rutledge

John Rutledge (1739-1800), American jurist and statesman, was Revolutionary War governor of South Carolina. He exemplified the conservative views of the mercantile and planter aristocracy.

John Rutledge was born in Charleston, S.C., into an affluent and politically active family. He was tutored at home and then went to England at 18 to study law. After being admitted to the English bar in 1760, he returned to Charleston, where he developed a successful practice. He served as the province's attorney general (1764-1765), but as a member of the Commons House of Assembly (1761-1776), he was more often in vigorous opposition to the royal administration.

At the Stamp Act Congress, Rutledge vigorously defended American rights. In 1769 he fought for the Commons' appropriation of funds in support of the English radical John Wilkes. In the general quarrel with Britain, however, Rutledge was a moderate. At the First Continental Congress he approved the Galloway Plan for a constitutional accommodation with the mother country, although he joined the movement for independence; in the Second Congress he urged the establishment of new state governments. He helped to frame the South Carolina constitution of 1776 and was immediately chosen president (governor) of the state, but his innate conservatism caused him to resign 2 years later.

When South Carolina was confronted by a British invasion in 1779, the state again chose Rutledge as governor, and for the next 3 years he provided energetic leadership in the war effort, with such broad emergency powers that he was called "Dictator Rutledge." Resigning in 1782, he was elected to the state legislature and in 1784 was named to the state's chancery court. At the Constitutional Convention he resisted restrictions on the slave trade, urged property as a basis for representation, and sought election of the president by Congress, and of the Congress by state legislatures.

President George Washington named Rutledge to the Supreme Court when it was organized in 1789, but he resigned 2 years later, without ever having attended a single session of the Court, to become chief justice of South Carolina. In 1795 Washington appointed him chief justice of the United States, but Rutledge's violent speech against the Jay Treaty resulted in a Senate rejection of the nomination, even though he had presided at one term of the court. The ferocity of his tirade was symptomatic of a mental deterioration which had commenced a few years earlier upon the death of his wife. He died on July 18, 1800.

Further Reading

The only full-length biography of Rutledge is Richard H. Barry, Mr. Rutledge of South Carolina (1942); it is based on extensive sources and is highly readable. His political career in South Carolina may be traced in Edward McCrady, History of South Carolina (4 vols., 1897-1902), and David D. Wallace, History of South Carolina (4 vols., 1934-1935; rev. ed., 1 vol., 1951). Rutledge's career on the Supreme Court in discussed in Charles Warren, The Supreme Court in United States History (3 vols., 1923; 2 vols., rev. ed. 1935), and in Leon Friedman and Fred L. Israel, eds., The Justices of the United States Supreme Court, 1789-1969 (4 vols., 1969).

Additional Sources

Barry, Richard, b. 1881. Mr. Rutledge of South Carolina, Salem, N.H.: Ayer, 1993.

Haw, James. Founding brothers: John and Edward Rutledge of South Carolina, Athens: University of Georgia, 1997.

 
US Government Guide: John Rutledge, Associate Justice, 1790–91 Chief Justice (unconfirmed), 1795

Born: Sept. 1739, Charleston, S.C.
Education: privately tutored at home; studied law at the Middle Temple, London
Other government service: South Carolina Commons House of Assembly, 1761–76; attorney general of South Carolina, 1764–65; Stamp Act Congress, 1765; Continental Congress, 1774–76, 1776–78; governor of South Carolina, 1779–82; judge of the Court of Chancery of South Carolina, 1784–91; chief, South Carolina delegation to the Constitutional Convention, 1787; South Carolina Ratifying Convention, 1788; chief justice, South Carolina Court of Common Pleas, 1791
Appointed by President George Washington to be an associate justice Sept. 24, 1789, as one of the original members of the U.S. Supreme Court; appointed by Washington as a recess appointment July 1, 1795, to be chief justice; replaced Chief Justice John Jay, who resigned
Supreme Court term: confirmed by the Senate as an associate justice Sept. 26, 1789, by a voice vote; resigned Mar. 5, 1791; sworn in as recess appointment to position of chief justice Aug. 12, 1795; the Senate rejected his appointment as chief justice by a vote of 14 to 10 and his service was terminated on Dec. 15, 1795
Died: June 21, 1800, Charleston, S.C.

John Rutledge was one of the founders of the United States. He was a member of the Continental Congress and the Constitutional Convention of 1787. He was also a member of the committee that wrote the first constitution of South Carolina in 1776.

In 1789 President George Washington appointed Rutledge to be one of the original associate justices of the U.S. Supreme Court. Rutledge resigned in 1791, having written no opinions for the Supreme Court. He left the Supreme Court to become chief justice of South Carolina, which at that time was considered a more important position.

In 1795 President Washington appointed Rutledge to replace John Jay as chief justice of the United States. Jay had resigned to become governor of New York. Rutledge presided over the Court (without Senate confirmation) from August 12 to December 15, 1795, while the Congress was in recess. However, the Senate refused to confirm his nomination because of political disagreements with Rutledge, who had spoken publicly against a treaty negotiated by John Jay with the British government. The Senate had ratified the Jay Treaty in 1794 and many members were angered by Rutledge's promotion of public criticism of the Senate about the matter. So President Washington named Oliver Ellsworth to be the chief justice, and the Senate confirmed this appointment.

Rutledge was so shaken by the Senate's rejection of his nomination that he tried to drown himself. He recovered from this suicide attempt but spent the rest of his life in seclusion. He died at the age of 60 in Charleston, South Carolina.

See also Nominations, confirmation of

 
Columbia Encyclopedia: Rutledge, John,
1739–1800, American jurist and political leader, 2d Chief Justice of the United States, b. Charleston, S.C.; brother of Edward Rutledge. After studying law in London he began practice in Charleston, S.C., in 1761. He rose to prominence when quite young, was a member (1762) of the provincial assembly, attorney general of South Carolina (1764–65), and a delegate (1765) to the Stamp Act Congress. He twice (1774–76, 1782–83) was a member of the Continental Congress and meanwhile held strong sway as president (1776–78) of his state and later (1779–82) as governor. As delegate (1787) to the Constitutional Convention, Rutledge played an important role in the drafting of the U.S. Constitution, and then (1788) was a member of the state ratifying convention. After serving (1789–91) as Associate Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court he was chief justice of South Carolina. In July, 1795, he was appointed interim Chief Justice of the United States and presided at the August term of the Supreme Court, but the Senate (Dec., 1795) refused to confirm the appointment because of his bitter attacks on Jay's Treaty.

Bibliography

See biography by R. H. Barry (1942, repr. 1971).

 
Wikipedia: John Rutledge
John Rutledge
John Rutledge

In office
July 1 1795 – December 15 1795
Nominated by George Washington
Preceded by John Jay
Succeeded by Oliver Ellsworth

In office
February 15 1790 – March 5 1791
Nominated by George Washington
Preceded by (none)
Succeeded by Thomas Johnson

31st Governor of South Carolina
In office
July 4 1776 – March 7 1778
Lieutenant(s) Henry Laurens (1776-1777)
James Parsons (1777-1778)
Preceded by William Campbell
Succeeded by Rawlins Lowndes
In office
January 9 1779 – January 31 1782
Lieutenant(s) Thomas Bee (1779-1780)
Christopher Gadsden (1780-1782)
Preceded by Rawlins Lowndes
Succeeded by John Mathews

Born September 17 1739(1739--)
Charleston, South Carolina
Died July 18 1800 (aged 60)
Charleston, South Carolina, USA
Spouse Elizabeth Grimke
Religion Episcopalian

John Rutledge (September 17, 1739July 18, 1800) was Governor of South Carolina, delegate to the Constitutional Convention, signer of the United States Constitution, and served on the U.S. Supreme Court (Chief Justice from August to December 1795). He was the elder brother of Edward Rutledge, a signer of the Declaration of Independence.

Childhood and family

John Rutledge was born into a large family at or near Charleston, South Carolina, and received his early education from his father who was an alcoholic Scots Irish immigrant and physician, and from an Anglican priest and a tutor. After studying law at London's Middle Temple in 1760, he was admitted to English practice. But, almost at once, he sailed back to Charleston to begin a fruitful legal career and to build on his mother's fortune in plantations and slaves. Three years later, he married Elizabeth Grimke, who eventually bore him 10 children, and moved into a townhouse, where he resided most of the remainder of his life.

Pre-Revolutionary War activism

In 1761, Rutledge became politically active. That year, on behalf of Christ Church Parish, he was elected to the provincial assembly and held his seat until the American Revolution. For 10 months in 1764 he temporarily held the post of provincial Attorney General. When the troubles with Great Britain intensified about the time of the Stamp Act in 1765, Rutledge, who hoped to ensure continued self-government for the colonies, sought to avoid severance from the British and maintained a restrained stance. He did, however, chair a committee of the Stamp Act Congress that drew up a petition to the House of Lords.

In 1774, Rutledge was sent to the First Continental Congress, where he pursued a moderate course. After spending the next year in the Second Continental Congress, he returned to South Carolina and helped reorganize its government. In 1776, he served on the committee of safety and took part in the writing of the state constitution. That year, he also became president of the lower house of the legislature, a post he held until 1778. During this period, the new government met many stern tests.

In 1778, the conservative Rutledge, disapproving of democratic revisions in the state constitution, resigned his position. The next year, however, he was elected as governor. It was a difficult time. The British were invading South Carolina, and the military situation was desperate. Early in 1780, by which time the legislature had adjourned, Charleston was besieged. In May it fell, the American army was captured, and the British confiscated Rutledge's property. He ultimately escaped to North Carolina and set about attempting to rally forces to recover South Carolina. In 1781, aided by Gen. Nathanael Greene and a new Continental Army force, he reestablished the government. In January 1782 he resigned the governorship and took a seat in the lower house of the legislature. He never recouped the financial losses he suffered during the war.

Post-war

In 1782-1783, Rutledge was a delegate to the Continental Congress. He next sat on the state chancery court (1784) and again in the lower house of the legislature (1784-1790). One of the most influential delegates at the Constitutional Convention, where he maintained a moderate nationalist stance and chaired the Committee of Detail, he attended all the sessions, spoke often and effectively, and served on five committees. Like his fellow South Carolina delegates, he vigorously advocated southern interests. He had strong feelings on the right to the slave trade and even threatened to leave if slavery was not allowed.

Supreme Court Associate Justice

The new government under the Constitution soon lured Rutledge. He was a presidential elector in 1789, and George Washington then appointed him as Associate Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court, but he served for only two years. In 1791, he became chief justice of the South Carolina Supreme Court.

Second Chief Justice of the United States

In 1795, George Washington again appointed Rutledge during a recess of the Senate to the U.S. Supreme Court, this time as Chief Justice of the United States replacing John Jay. Rutledge became Chief Justice on July 1 of 1795.[1] Soon thereafter, on July 16 of 1795, Rutledge gave a highly controversial speech denouncing the Jay Treaty with England. He reportedly said in the speech "that he had rather the President should die than sign that puerile instrument — and that he preferred war to an adoption of it."[2]

Rutledge's outspoken opposition to the Jay Treaty, and the rumors of mental illness he had suffered since the death of his wife in 1792, caused the Federalist-dominated Senate to reject his appointment on December 15 of 1795, ending his public career. In the meantime, however, he had presided over one term of the Court. Alexander Hamilton questioned his sanity, and Vice President John Adams wrote to Abigail Adams that the Senate's rejection of Rutledge "gave me pain for an old friend, though I could not but think he deserved it. C. Justices must not ... inflame the popular discontents which are ill founded, nor propagate Disunion, Division, Contention and delusion among the people."[3] Rutledge attempted suicide, shortly before resigning as Chief Justice on December 28 of 1795.[4]

Rutledge died in 1800 at the age of 60 and was interred at St. Michael's Episcopal Church in Charleston. One of his houses, said to have been built in 1763 and definitely sold in 1790, was renovated in 1989 and opened to the public as the John Rutledge Inn.

  • "By doing good with his money, a man, as it were, stamps the image of God upon it, and makes it pass, current for the merchandise of heaven." ~ John Rutledge

References

  1. ^ Fisher, Louis. “Recess Appointments of Federal Judges,” Congressional Research Service (2001-09-05).
  2. ^ Independent Chronicle (Boston). 1795-08-13, reprinted in The Documentary History of the Supreme Court of the United States, 1789-1800 by Maeva Marcus and James Russell Perry.
  3. ^ Maltese, John. The Selling of Supreme Court Nominees (Johns Hopkins University Press 1998), pp. 30-31.
  4. ^ Haw, James. John and Edward Rutledge of South Carolina, (University of Georgia Press 1997).

External links

Note

This article is based on public domain text created for the US National Archives


Preceded by
(none)
President of South Carolina
17761778
Succeeded by
Rawlins Lowndes
Preceded by
Rawlins Lowndes
Governor of South Carolina
17791782
Succeeded by
John Mathews
Preceded by
(none)
Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States
February 15, 1790March 5, 1791
Succeeded by
Thomas Johnson
Preceded by
John Jay
Chief Justice of the United States
July 1, 1795December 15, 1795
Succeeded by
Oliver Ellsworth
The Jay Court Seal of the U.S. Supreme Court
1789–1792: J. Wilson | Wm. Cushing | J. Blair | J. Rutledge | J. Iredell
The Rutledge Court
1795: J. Wilson | Wm. Cushing | J. Blair | J. Iredell | Wm. Paterson

 
 

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US Supreme Court. The Oxford Companion to the Supreme Court of the United States. Copyright © 1992, 2005 by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved.  Read more
Biography. © 2006 through a partnership of Answers Corporation. All rights reserved.  Read more
US Government Guide. The Oxford Guide to the United States Government. Copyright © 1993, 1994, 1998, 2001, 2002 by John J. Patrick, Richard M. Pious, Donald M. Ritchie. All rights reserved.  Read more
Columbia Encyclopedia. The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition Copyright © 2003, Columbia University Press. Licensed from Columbia University Press. All rights reserved. www.cc.columbia.edu/cu/cup/  Read more
Wikipedia. This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "John Rutledge" Read more

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