John Jay was one of the Founding Fathers of the United States and the first Chief Justice of the newly-independent nation. Jay was a true patriot and was among the American commissioners who negotiated with Great Britain during the United States’ struggle for independence from British colonial rule. A qualified lawyer, he served as the first Chief Justice of the United States and played an important role in American politics during the early years of the newly-independent former colonies. Born into a wealthy family as the son of a prominent businessman, he enjoyed a privileged childhood and was homeschooled as a young boy. He proved to be a good student and went on to study law under the prominent lawyer and politician Benjamin Kissam. Soon he became a qualified lawyer and set up his own successful practice. He also ventured into politics and attended the First Continental Congress. He actively opposed British rule when the American Revolution broke out though he was initially skeptical regarding the separation of America from Britain. Nonetheless, he became a negotiator of the Treaty of Paris by which Great Britain recognized American independence and went on to serve as the Secretary of Foreign Affairs, helping to fashion United States foreign policy. Initially a slave holder himself, he also gained considerable fame as a tireless crusader for the abolition of slavery.