[377] His reputation for being both quick-tempered and confident worked to his advantage;[378] it misled opponents to see him as simple and direct, leading them to often understimate his political shrewdness.[379]

Religious faith
In 1838, Jackson became an official member of the First Presbyterian Church in Nashville.[380] Both his mother and his wife had been devout Presbyterians all their lives, but Jackson stated that he had postponed officially entering the church until after his retirement to avoid accusations that he had done so for political reasons.[381]

Legacy
Equestrian statue of Jackson by Charles Keck in front of the Jackson County Courthouse, Kansas City, Missouri (1934). Commissioned by Judge Harry S. Truman
See also: List of memorials to Andrew Jackson
Jackson's legacy is controversial[382][383] and polarized.[384] Jackson's contemporary, Alexis de Tocqueville depicted Jackson as the spokesperson of the majority and their passions.[385] He has been variously described as a frontiersman personifying the independence of the American West,[386] a slave-owning member of the Southern gentry,[387] and a populist who promoted faith in the wisdom of the ordinary citizen.