John Breckenridge served as U.S. attorney general from 1805 to 1806 under President Thomas Jefferson. A fervent supporter of Jefferson while serving in the U.S. Senate, Breckenridge led the fight to impeach two Federalist judges because of their opposition to Jefferson and the Republican Party. Breckenridge was born on December 2, 1760, near Staunton, Virginia. He studied at Augusta Academy, near Staunton, which is now Washington and Lee University. Breckenridge later transferred to the College of William and Mary in Williamsburg, Virginia. He was elected a member of the Virginia House of Burgesses in 1780, but because he was nineteen years old, he was not allowed to take his seat. During the Revolutionary War, Breckenridge served in the Virginia Militia. Following the war he studied law with a Virginia attorney and was admitted to the state bar in 1785.

After establishing a law practice in Charlottesville, Virginia, Breckenridge became involved in politics...