John Adams, the second President of the United States , was a devoted patriot, a skilled diplomat and a pragmatic leader. "People and nations are forged in the fires of adversity,” he said, recalling not only the nation’s fight for freedom, but also the hardships he endured in its service.

Adams was born in Braintree (now called Quincy ) Massachusetts in 1735. He received a scholarship to Harvard, and practiced law soon after graduating. His outspoken opposition to the British government’s hated Stamp Act and Writs of Assistance made Adams a prominent figure in Boston .

Paradoxically, his best-known legal case was the successful defense of eight British soldiers accused of murder in the “Boston Massacre” of 1770. Although he knew it might make him unpopular, Adams believed the soldiers deserved a fair trial. “Facts are stubborn things,” he reminded the jury, “and whatever may be our wishes… they cannot alter the state of facts and evidence.”

Adams later became a delegate to both Continental Congresses. As the Revolutionary War drew on, he served as a diplomat in France and the Netherlands , gaining Dutch recognition (and much-needed loans) for the newborn nation.

Adams ’ diplomatic skills would be much in demand in the following years. He soon returned to France to negotiate a peace treaty with England . The 1783 Treaty of Paris fixed the nation’s western boundary at the Mississippi River , instantly doubling its size. Two years later he accepted an even thornier assignment, becoming the first United States ambassador to Great Britain .

In 1789, Adams was elected Vice President under George Washington. He described that position as “for me, the most insignificant office that ever the invention of man contrived..." On Washington ’s retirement in 1796, Adams was elected to the presidency.

His term was largely marked by crises in Europe and their repercussions at home. England and France were at war, and both nations allowed their ships to capture American merchant vessels, crews and cargo. When Adams sent representatives to France to work out a solution, three of that country’s ministers refused any meeting unless they were paid a substantial bribe.

The so-called “XYZ Affair” produced cries for retaliation against France , but Adams held firm against a declaration of war. Instead, he provided armaments for the American merchantmen, which successfully engaged French vessels. Shortly thereafter, the French ended hostilities.

But the military buildup had come at a cost. Taxation was increased, which caused widespread protests. Adams had also signed the controversial Alien and Sedition Acts, which critics said stifled political opposition and treated recent immigrants harshly. Faced with disunity in his own Federalist Party and strong opposition by the Democratic-Republicans, Adams lost in his bid for a second term to Thomas Jefferson.

Returning to Massachusetts in retirement, Adams lived quietly with his wife Abigail, from whom public service had often separated him. He wrote prolifically, often corresponding with Jefferson . On July 4, 1826, knowing that his life was near its end, Adams is reputed to have said, “But Jefferson survives!” He was unaware that his old friend had died only a few hours earlier.