Thomas Jeffersons Contribution to the Constitution

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Thomas Jeffersons Contribution to the Constitution

The purpose of this paper is to give a brief chronological accounting of the writing of the Declaration of Independence by Thomas Jefferson. A short description of the structure of the Declaration of Independence will be included. The process was relatively fast, from the formation of the committee.

The committee consisted of two New England men, John Adams of Massachusetts and Roger Sherman of Connecticut; two men from the Middle Colonies, Benjamin Franklin of Pennsylvania and Robert R. Livingston of New York; and one southerner, Thomas Jefferson of Virginia. In early June, the committee met as a whole and unanimously insisted that Jefferson draw up the declaration. Jefferson wrote that the other members of the committee "unanimously pressed on myself alone to undertake the draught. I consented; I drew it; but before I reported it to the committee I communicated it separately to Dr. Franklin and Mr. Adams requesting their corrections. . . I then wrote a fair copy, reported it to the committee, and from them, unaltered to the Congress." Jefferson's account reflects three stages in the life of the Declaration: the document originally written by Jefferson; the changes to that document made by Franklin and Adams, which resulted in the version that was submitted by the Committee of Five to the Congress; and the version that was eventually adopted.

On July 1, 1776, Congress reconvened. The following day, the Lee Resolution for independence was adopted by 12 of the 13 colonies, New York not voting. Immediately afterward, the Congress began to consider the Declaration. Adams and Franklin had made only a few changes before the committee submitted the document. The discussion in Congress resulted in some alterations and deletions, but the basic document remained Jefferson's. The process of revision continued through all of July 3 and into the late afternoon of July 4. Then, at last, church bells including Paul Revere's bell, rang out over Philadelphia; the Declaration had been officially adopted.

The Declaration of Independence is made up of five distinct parts: the introduction; the preamble; the body, which can be divided into two sections; and a conclusion. The introduction states that this document will "declare" the "causes" that have made it necessary for the American colonies to leave the B...

... middle of paper ...

.... Because of his absence in Europe, Jefferson had no direct part in the framing or ratification of the Constitution of the United States.

The most notable achievement of Jefferson's first term as President (1800) was the purchase in 1803 of Louisiana from France for 15 million dollars. (see Lewis and Clark). During his second term Jefferson encountered greater difficulties. One of the domestic problems was the Burr-Conspiracy, with the former vice president on trial for treason.

Jefferson was succeeded as president in 1809 by James Madison. During the last 17 years of his life, Jefferson remained in Virginia. As the 'Sage of Monticello' he engaged in a rich correspondence with John Adams and others. Jefferson's last great public service was the founding of the University of Virginia in 1819. He died at Monticello on July 4, 1826 on the 50th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence.

Bibliography:

Eyler Robert Coates, Sr. Quotations from the writings of Thomas Jefferson (http://etext.lib.virginia.edu/jefferson/quotations/ 1995-2001)

David Kennedy; Lizabeth Cohen, The American Pageant (New York: Houghton Mifflin, 2002), A31.

David Kennedy; Lizabeth Cohen, A33

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