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People of the Revolutionary War | Patriots of the American Revolution | Thomas Jefferson
Thomas Jefferson
3rd President of the United States and Author of the Declaration of Independence
1743-1826
Thomas Jefferson - The Man
Thomas Jefferson wished to be remembered for three achievements in his public life. He had served as
governor of Virginia, as U.S. minister to France, as secretary of state under
George Washington, as vice-president in the administration of John Adams,
and as president of the United States from 1801 to 1809.
On his tombstone, however, which he designed and for which he wrote the inscription, there is no mention
of these offices. Rather, it reads that Thomas Jefferson was "author of the
Declaration of American Independence, of the State of Virginia for religious freedom, and Father of the
University of Virginia" and, as he requested, "not a word more." Historians might want to
add other accomplishments--for example, his distinction as an architect, naturalist, and linguist--but in
the main they would concur with his own assessment.
Early Life
Jefferson was born at Shadwell in what is now Albemarle County, Va., on Apr. 13, 1743. He treated his
pedigree lightly, but his mother, Jane Randolph Jefferson, came from one of the first families of Virginia;
his father, Peter Jefferson, was a well-to-do landowner, although not in the class of the wealthiest planters.
Jefferson attended (1760-62) the College of William and Mary and then studied law with
George Wythe. In 1769 he began six years of service as a representative in the Virginia House of
Burgesses. The following year he began building Monticello on land inherited from his father. The mansion,
which he designed in every detail, took years to complete, but part of it was ready for occupancy when he
married Martha Wayles Skelton on Jan. 1, 1772. They had six children, two of whom survived into adulthood.
Jefferson's reputation began to reach beyond Virginia in 1774, when he wrote a political pamphlet, A Summary
View of the Rights of British America. Arguing on the basis of natural rights theory, Jefferson claimed that
colonial allegiance to the king was voluntary. "The God who gave us life," he wrote, "gave us
liberty at the same time: the hand of force may destroy, but cannot disjoin them."
Declaration of Independence
Elected to the Second Continental Congress, meeting in
Philadelphia, Jefferson was appointed on June 11, 1776, to head a committee
of five in preparing the Declaration Of Independence. He was its primary author, although his initial draft
was amended after consultation with Benjamin Franklin and John Adams and
altered both stylistically and substantively by Congress. Jefferson's reference to the voluntary allegiance
of colonists to the crown was struck; also deleted was a clause that censured the monarchy for imposing
slavery upon America.
Based upon the same natural rights theory contained in A Summary View, to which it bears a strong resemblance,
the Declaration of Independence made Jefferson internationally famous. Years later that fame evoked the
jealousy of John Adams, who complained that the declaration's ideas were "hackneyed." Jefferson
agreed; he wrote of the declaration, "Neither aiming at originality of principle or sentiment, nor yet
copied from any particular and previous writing, it was intended to be an expression of the American mind."
Revolutionary Legislator
Returning to Virginia late in 1776, Jefferson served until 1779 in the House of Delegates, one of the two
houses of the General Assembly of Virginia--established in 1776 by the state's new constitution. While the
American Revolution continued, Jefferson sought to liberalize Virginia's laws. Joined by his old law teacher,
George Wythe, and by James Madison and George
Mason, Jefferson introduced a number of bills that were resisted fiercely by those representing the
conservative planter class. In 1776 he succeeded in obtaining the abolition of entail; his proposal to abolish
primogeniture became law in 1785. Jefferson proudly noted that "these laws, drawn by myself, laid the ax
to the foot of pseudoaristocracy."
Jefferson was also instrumental in devising a major revision of the criminal code, although it was not enacted
until 1796. His bill to create a free system of tax-supported elementary education for all except slaves was
defeated as were his bills to create a public library and to modernize the curriculum of the College of William
and Mary.
In June 1779 the introduction of Jefferson's bill on religious liberty touched off a quarrel that caused turmoil
in Virginia for 8 years. The bill was significant as no other state--indeed, no other nation--provided for complete
religious liberty at that time. Jefferson's bill stated "that all men shall be free to profess, and by argument
to maintain, their opinions on matters of religion, and that the same shall in no wise diminish, enlarge, or
affect their civil capacities." Many Virginians regarded the bill as an attack upon Christianity. It did not
pass until 1786, and then mainly through the perseverance of James Madison. Jefferson, by then in France,
congratulated Madison, adding that "it is honorable for us to have produced the first legislature who had
the courage to declare that the reason of man may be trusted with the formation of his own opinions."
Wartime Governor of Virginia
In June 1779, Jefferson was elected governor of Virginia. His political enemies criticized his performance as
war governor mercilessly. He was charged with failure to provide for the adequate defense of Richmond in 1780-81,
although he knew a British invasion was imminent, and of cowardice and "pusillanimous conduct" when he
fled the capital during the moment of crisis. In June 1781 he retired from the governorship.
The Virginia assembly subsequently voted that "an inquiry be made into the conduct of the executive of this
state." Jefferson was exonerated: in fact, the assembly unanimously voted a resolution of appreciation of
his conduct. The episode left Jefferson bitter, however, about the rewards of public service.
Money and the Ordinance of 1784
The death of his wife, on Sept. 6, 1782, added to Jefferson's troubles, but by the following year he was again
seated in Congress. There he made two contributions of enduring importance to the nation. In April 1784 he
submitted Notes on the Establishment of a Money Unit and of a Coinage for the United States in which he advised
the use of a decimal system. This report led to the adoption (1792) of the dollar, rather than the pound, as
the basic monetary unit in the United States.
As chairman of the committee dealing with the government of western lands, Jefferson submitted proposals so
liberal and farsighted as to constitute, when enacted, the most progressive colonial policy of any nation in
modern history. The proposed ordinance of 1784 reflected Jefferson's belief that the western territories should
be self-governing and, when they reached a certain stage of growth, should be admitted to the Union as full
partners with the original 13 states. Jefferson also proposed that slavery should be excluded from all of the
American western territories after 1800. Although he himself was a slaveowner, he believed that slavery was an
evil that should not be permitted to spread. In 1784 the provision banning slavery was narrowly defeated.
Had one representative (John Beatty of New Jersey), sick and confined to his lodging, been present, the vote
would have been different. "Thus," Jefferson later reflected, "we see the fate of millions unborn
hanging on the tongue of one man, and heaven was silent in that awful moment." Although Congress approved
the proposed ordinance of 1784, it was never put into effect; its main features were incorporated, however, in
the Ordinance of 1787, which established the Northwest Territory. Moreover, slavery was prohibited in the
Northwest Territory.
Minister to France
From 1784 to 1789, Jefferson lived outside the United States. He was sent to Paris initially as a commissioner
to help negotiate commercial treaties; then in 1785 he succeeded Benjamin Franklin as minister to France. Most
European countries, however, were indifferent to American economic overtures. "They seemed, in fact,"
Jefferson wrote, "to know little about us. . . . They were ignorant of our commerce, and of the exchange
of articles it might offer advantageously to both parties." Only one country, Prussia, signed a pact based
on a model treaty drafted by Jefferson.
During these years Jefferson followed events in the United States with understandable interest. He advised
against any harsh punishment of those responsible for Shay's Rebellion (1786-87) in Massachusetts. He worried particularly that the new Of The United Sates lacked a bill of rights
and failed to limit the number of terms for the presidency. In France he witnessed the beginning of the French
Revolution, but he doubted whether the French people could duplicate the American example of republican government.
His advice, more conservative than might be anticipated, was that France emulate the British system of
constitutional monarchy.
Secretary of State
When Jefferson left Paris on Sept. 26, 1789, he expected to return to his post. On that date and unknown to him,
however, Congress confirmed his appointment as secretary of state in the first administration of George Washington.
Jefferson accepted the position with some reluctance and largely because of Washington's insistence. He immediately
expressed his alarm at the regal forms and ceremonies that marked the executive office, but his fears were tempered
somewhat by his confidence in the character of Washington.
Jefferson, however, distrusted both the proposals and the motives of Secretary of the Treasury
Alexander Hamilton. He thought Hamilton's financial programs both unwise and
unconstitutional, flowing "from principles adverse to liberty." On the issue of federal assumption of
state debts, Jefferson struck a bargain with Hamilton permitting assumption to pass--a concession that he later
regretted. He attempted, unsuccessfully, to persuade Washington to veto the bill incorporating a Bank Of The
United States--recommended by Hamilton.
Jefferson suspected Hamilton and others in the emerging Federalist Party of a secret design to implant monarchist
ideals and institutions in the government. The disagreements spilled over into foreign affairs. Hamilton was
pro-British, and Jefferson was by inclination pro-French, although he directed the office of secretary of state
with notable objectivity. The more Washington sided with Hamilton, the more Jefferson became dissatisfied with
his minority position within the cabinet. Finally, after being twice dissuaded from resigning, Jefferson did so
on Dec. 31, 1793.
Brief Retirement
At home for the next three years, Jefferson devoted himself to farm and family. He experimented with a new plow
and other ingenious inventions, built a nail factory, commenced the rebuilding of Monticello, set out a thousand
peach trees, received distinguished guests from abroad, and welcomed the visits of his grandchildren. But he also
followed national and international developments with a mounting sense of foreboding. "From the moment of
my retiring from the administration," he later wrote, "the Federalists got unchecked hold on General
Washington." Jefferson thought Washington's expedition to suppress the
Whiskey Rebellion (1794) an unnecessary use of military force. He deplored Washington's denunciation of the
Democratic societies and considered Jay's Treaty (1794) with Britain a "monument
of folly and venality."
Vice-President
Thus Jefferson welcomed Washington's decision not to run for a third term in 1796. Jefferson became the
eluctant presidential candidate of the Democratic-Republican party, and he seemed genuinely relieved when
the Federalist candidate, John Adams, gained a narrow electoral college victory (71 to 68). As the runner-up,
however, Jefferson became vice-president under the system then in effect.
Jefferson hoped that he could work with Adams, as of old, especially since both men shared an anti-Hamilton
bias. But those hopes were soon dashed. Relations with France deteriorated. In 1798, in the wake of the XYZ
Affair, the so-called Quasi-War began. New taxes were imposed and the Alien And Sedition Acts (1798) threatened
the freedom of Americans. Jefferson, laboring to check the authoritarian drift of the national government,
secretly authored the Kentucky Resolution. More important, he provided his party with principles and
strategy, aiming to win the election of 1800.
President
Jefferson's triumph was delayed temporarily as a result of a tie in electoral ballots with his running mate,
Aaron Burr, which shifted the election to the House of Representatives. There
Hamilton's influence helped Jefferson to prevail, although most Federalists supported Burr as the lesser evil.
In his inaugural speech Jefferson held out an olive branch to his political enemies, inviting them to bury the
partisanship of the past decade, to unite now as Americans.
Federalist leaders remained adamantly opposed to Jefferson, but the people approved his policies. Internal
taxes were reduced; the military budget was cut; the Alien and Sedition Acts were permitted to lapse; and plans
were made to extinguish the public debt. Simplicity and frugality became the hallmarks of Jefferson's administration.
The Louisiana Purchase (1803) capped his
achievements. Ironically, Jefferson had to overcome constitutional scruples in order to take over the vast new
territory without authorization by constitutional amendment. In this instance it was his Federalist critics who
became the constitutional purists. Nonetheless, the purchase was received with popular enthusiasm. In the election
of 1804, Jefferson swept every state except two--Connecticut and Delaware.
2nd Administration
Jefferson's second administration began with a minor success--the favorable settlement concluding the Tripolitan
War (1801-05), in which the newly created U.S. Navy fought its first engagements. The following year the Lewis
and Clark Expedition, which the president had dispatched to explore the Louisiana Territory, returned triumphantly
after crossing the continent. The West was also a source of trouble, however. The disaffected Aaron Burr engaged
in a conspiracy, the details of which are still obscure, either to establish an independent republic in the
Louisiana Territory or to launch an invasion of Spanish-held Mexico. Jefferson acted swiftly to arrest Burr early
in 1807 and bring him to trial for treason. Burr was acquitted, however.
Jefferson's main concern in his second administration was foreign affairs, in which he experienced a notable
failure. In the course of the Napoleonic Wars Britain and France repeatedly violated American sovereignty in
incidents such as the Chesapeake affair (1807). Jefferson attempted to avoid a policy of either appeasement
or war by the use of economic pressure.
The Embargo Act (Dec. 22, 1807), which prohibited
virtually all exports and most imports and was supplemented by enforcing legislation, was designed to coerce British
and French recognition of American rights. Although it failed, it did rouse many northerners, who suffered economically,
to a state of defiance of national authority. The Federalist party experienced a rebirth of popularity. In 1809,
shortly before he retired from the presidency, Jefferson signed the act repealing the embargo, which had been in
effect for 15 months.
Later Life
In the final 17 years of his life, Jefferson's major accomplishment was the founding (1819) of the University
of Virginia at Charlottesville. He conceived it, planned it, designed it, and supervised both its construction
and the hiring of faculty.
The university was the last of three contributions by which Jefferson wished to be remembered; they constituted
a trilogy of interrelated causes: freedom from Britain, freedom of conscience, and freedom maintained through
education. On July 4, 1826, the 50th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, Jefferson died at Monticello.
Additional Resources
- Biography.com: Thomas Jefferson
Short profile with links to related individuals.
- Conversations on Thomas Jefferson and Jeffersonian Politics
A moderated "Open Forum" for discussion of topics related to Thomas Jefferson, including, but not limited to, the Sally Hemings controversy.
- The Jefferson Literary and Debating Society
Based at the University of Virginia, the oldest continuously existing collegiate debating society in North America.
- Jefferson National Expansion Memorial
The Jefferson National Expansion Memorial is located in St. Louis and consists of the Gateway Arch, the Museum of Westward Expansion, and St. Louis' Old Courthouse.
- The Jeffersonian Perspective
"Commentary on today's social and political issues based on the writings of Thomas Jefferson".
- Jenkinson on Jefferson
Jefferson facts and commentary by scholar, broadcaster and Jefferson impersonator Clay Jenkinson.
- Life of Thomas Jefferson
Online text of B.L. Rayner's biography "published just eight years after Jefferson's death, it is a fervent story, filled with the republican spirit".
- Monticello
Jefferson's home in Charlottesville. Site includes information about the house, plantation and grounds as well as the man himself.
- Monticello Forum Frigate
Discussion forum and live chat devoted to Thomas Jefferson's architecture and Monticello.
- Mr. Jefferson's Music
Passionate music-lover and amateur violinist, Jefferson obtained the latest baroque compositions from Europe.
- Online Resources at the University of Virginia
Online texts, quotations, bibliography and other resources from the UVA.
- Poplar Forest
"Jefferson enjoyed "the solitude of a hermit" at his year-round retreat near Lynchburg, Virginia". History, restoration and events at Jefferson's second home.
- POTUS: Thomas Jefferson
Includes background information, election results, cabinet members, and links.
- Six Historic Americans: Thomas Jefferson
"Had his works been suppressed ... the clergy might with less fear of exposure claim that their author was a Christian ... for these writings clearly prove that he was not a Christian, but a Freethinker".
- Thomas Jefferson
Speeches, writings and biography from the HTML Project.
- Thomas Jefferson
Short biography from the official Whitehouse site.
- Thomas Jefferson - From Virtualology
Biography, including a handwriting sample.
- Thomas Jefferson and Civil Liberties
A study on Thomas Jefferson and his dedication to American civil liberties.
- Thomas Jefferson Campfire Forum
Forum and live chat about his life and works in a literary context.
- Thomas Jefferson Discussion Port
"devoted to a light hearted discussion centered about Thomas Jefferson. We'd love to hear your thoughts as well as suggestions regarding the best books and criticisms".
- Thomas Jefferson FAQ
Hundreds of questions and answers related to Jefferson, his thoughts, and his writings.
- Thomas Jefferson Forum Frigate
Forum and chat on his life and works.
- Thomas Jefferson Online
Site based on the PBS documentary by Ken Burns.
- Thomas Jefferson's Views on Women
Carefully researched article from The Early America Review, Fall 1997.
- An Act Establishing the University
Text of the Act establishing the University of Virginia.
- Autobiography
Jefferson's account of his life, written in 1821 and made available online by Bibliomania.
- The Avalon Project : Thomas Jefferson Papers
Hyperlinked index from Yale Law School.
- Decalogue
A Decalogue of Canons for observation in practical life, from a letter from Jefferson to Thomas Jefferson Smith.
- Dialogue Between My Head and My Heart
Thomas Jefferson's epic love letter to Maria Cosway - a timeless dialogue between the mind and matters of the heart.
- First Inaugural Address
HTML etext, with introduction.
- The Jefferson Bible
"Jefferson believed that the ethical system of Jesus was the finest the world has ever seen. In compiling what has come to be called the Jefferson Bible, he sought to separate these ethical teachings from the religious dogma".
- Jefferson on Politics and Government: Contents
Jefferson's political philosophy in his own words. The collection contains over 2,700 quotations from the writings of Thomas Jefferson.
- Jefferson on Separation of Church and State
The letter from the Danbury Baptist Association and Jefferson's 1801 reply in which he used the phrase, "wall of separation between church and state."
- Letters Jefferson
Chronological listing of the letters of Thomas Jefferson: 1743-1826.
- Second Inaugural Address
HTML etext, with introduction.
- A Summary View of the Rights of British America
Etext with footnotes.
- Texts by or to Thomas Jefferson
from the Modern English Collection at the University of Virginia.
- Thomas Jefferson
Searchable annotated bibliography provided by the University of Virginia, covering writings on Jefferson since his death in 1826.
- Thomas Jefferson - Autobiography
Text is broken down into general sections.
- Thomas Jefferson on Religious Freedom
Jefferson's Bill for establishing religious freedom in the State of Virginia.
- Thomas Jefferson on Slavery
Selections from Jefferson's "Notes on Virginia," Queries XIV and XVIII. Presented by the Afro-American Almanac.
- Thomas Jefferson Online: Archives
Jeffersons most important and controversial writings, and transcripts of 24 interviews conducted for Ken Burns' documentary.
- Thomas Jefferson Papers
27,000 documents from the Manuscript Division at the Library of Congress digitized and available online. Also includes a timeline of Jefferson's life.
- The Writings of Thomas Jefferson
The Memorial Edition of Jefferson's writings in 19 volumes, edited by Albert Ellery Bergh.
- Aphorisms by Author: Thomas Jefferson
Educational sayings by the author of the Declaration of Independence.
- Authors in the OED: Jefferson
Citations of Jefferson in the dictionary.
- Matters of Fact
Quotations by Thomas Jefferson, from monticello.org
- Quotations of Thomas Jefferson
Brief selection of quotations from "Bartlett's Quotations."
- Thomas Jefferson on Politics & Government
Jefferson's political philosophy in his own words. Contains the founding principles of American self-government.
- Thomas Jefferson's Quote of The Day
Daily quote by e-mail; can be hosted on any web page.
- Account of a Declaration: Introduction
From the Autobiography of Thomas Jefferson, his account of the circumstances leading to the Declaration of Independence.
- The Declaration of Independence
HTML etext, annotated, with references cross-linked to the Encyclopedia of the Self.
- The Declaration of Independence of the United States of America
Includes images, transcription, and analytical articles.
- Declaring Independence: Drafting the Documents
Library of Congress exhibit featuring documentary evidence of the people and events leading to the Declaration of Independence, including the only fragment of the earliest draft of the Declaration.
http://www.loc.gov/loc/legacy/concord.html
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