The Complex Legacy of Thomas Jefferson

"Here was buried Thomas Jefferson, Author of the Declaration of American Independence, of the Statute of Virginia for Religious Freedom, and Father of the University of Virginia." The words above are written on Thomas Jefferson’s gravestone. Where is the title “Third President of the United States of America" written? Jefferson believed that independence, religious freedom, and education were his most important accomplishments at the time, he didn 't believe that being a president of the United States was a big enough accomplishment to write on his tombstone. Although Thomas Jefferson accomplished many goals to form the United States during his presidency, such as the Louisiana purchase and the Declaration of Independence, he is still considered a hypocrite. Hypocrite can be defined as "a person who claims or pretends to have certain beliefs about what is right but who behaves in a way

Although living in a place where slavery was accepted, he called it "moral depravity" and believed that slavery presented the greatest threat to the survival of the new American nation. Jefferson wrote letters to his peers admitting that slavery is wrong and the he has a plan for emancipation.B In 1778, Jefferson drafted a Virginia law that prohibited the importation of enslaved Africans. In 1784, he proposed an ordinance that would ban slavery in the Northwest territories.2 Thomas Jefferson owned over 200 slaves and only freed few slaves upon his death. Jefferson treated his slaves well.3 Jefferson hardly ever allowed his slaves to be overworked or whipped. His slaves worked on his large plantation, he needed the slaves to raise his livestock and cash crops. Jefferson, although treating his slaves well, considered his slaves property.4 When he needed to he sold and bought them, he also punished the slaves that disobeyed him. Even though Jefferson opposed slavery, he still owned them at the same time making him a hypocrite.