Thomas Jefferson was an American statesman, diplomat, lawyer, architect, philosopher, and Founding Father. He served as the third president of the United States from 1801 to 1809. He was a proponent of democracy, republicanism, and individual rights, motivating American colonists to break from the Kingdom of Great Britain and form a new nation.
About Thomas Jefferson in brief
Thomas Jefferson was an American statesman, diplomat, lawyer, architect, philosopher, and Founding Father. He served as the third president of the United States from 1801 to 1809. Jefferson was a proponent of democracy, republicanism, and individual rights, motivating American colonists to break from the Kingdom of Great Britain and form a new nation. During his lifetime Jefferson owned over 600 slaves. Jefferson died on Independence Day, July 4, 1826, at the age of 80. He was of English, and possibly Welsh, descent and was born a British subject. His father was a planter and surveyor who died when Jefferson was 14. His mother was Jane Randolph; his father Peter Jefferson moved his family to Tuckahoe Plantation in 1745 upon the death of William Randolph, the plantation owner and Jefferson’s friend. The Jeffons returned to Shadwell in 1752, where Peter’s friend, Thomas Randolph, died in 1757. Thomas inherited approximately 5,000 acres of land, including Monticello. He assumed full authority over his property at 21, and began studying the natural world, which he grew to love. At this time he was self-taught, and regretting not having a formal education, he entered into an English school at five years of age. He died at age 80, and is buried at the Jefferson National Cemetery in Virginia, along with his wife, Abigail, and their three children. He is survived by his son, Thomas Jefferson, Jr., and his grandson, Jefferson Jefferson, III, who was born in 1743 and grew up in Virginia and went on to serve in the U.S.
House of Representatives and the Senate. His great-grandson, Jefferson III, served as President of the Republic from 1913 to 1917. He also served as Secretary of State under President George Washington from 1790 to 1793. During the American Revolution, Jefferson represented Virginia in the Continental Congress that adopted the Declaration of Independence. As a Virginia legislator, he drafted a state law for religious freedom. Jefferson and James Madison organized the Democratic-Republican Party to oppose the Federalist Party during the formation of the First Party System. He anonymously wrote the provocative Kentucky and Virginia Resolutions in 1798 and 1799, which sought to strengthen states’ rights by nullifying the federal Alien and Sedition Acts. As president, Jefferson pursued the nation’s shipping and trade interests against Barbary pirates and aggressive British trade policies. His second term was beset with difficulties at home, including the trial of former vice president Aaron Burr. In 1807, American foreign trade was diminished when Jefferson implemented the Embargo Act in response to British threats to U. S. shipping. Jefferson’s keen interest in religion and philosophy led to his presidency of the American Philosophical Society. He shunned organized religion but was influenced by both Christianity and deism. Jefferson knew several languages. After retiring from public office, Jefferson founded the University of Virginia. Jefferson continues to rank highly, among the top ten U. s. presidents.
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