Thomas Jefferson Declaration Of Independence

Have you ever read the most important document in our nation’s history, the Declaration of Independence. This salient document that set the US apart from Britain was written by none other than Thomas Jefferson. Jefferson was America’s third president, and was also the First Secretary of State. Thomas Jefferson also founded the University of Virginia. Jefferson was famous because of three main things in his life, his background, his beliefs and ideas, and his modern day significance.
Thomas Jefferson was born on April, 13, 1743, in Shadwell, Virginia. Jefferson started his schooling at a relatively young age by studying Greek, Latin, and French at age nine. At age sixteen, he began to attend William and Mary College in Williamsburg, Virginia

His idea was that “Under the law of nature, all men are born free, everyone comes into the world with a right to his own person, which includes the liberty of moving and using it at his own will. This is what is called personal liberty, and is given him by the author of nature, because necessary for his own” Jefferson believed in a small government, and wanted to keep the uniqueness of personal freedom and independence at top priority. He feared that a stronger, and more powerful government would take over the rights that the Constitution gave to the states. Jefferson also held onto the idea that small landowners and farmers were the backbone of the US. He didn’t want to concentrate power into the hands of a small group of wealthy

An example of this is Declaration of Independence. It is still referred to in congress to this day. Surprisingly he also founded the first amendment. When he was on the Virginia House of Delegates, he authored the Virginia Statute of Religious Freedom, which emphasized the separation of church and state, and freedom of religion. His idea for Virginia Statute of Religious Freedom was ratified as the first amendment in 1791. He also founded the University of Virginia, which it still up and run to this day. When it first opened, it was the first school that did not have any religious requirements and had no religious affiliations. Thomas Jefferson could be seen in the modern era as Ron Paul, US Representative for Texas. Ron Paul has many of the same morals as Jefferson held. They are both quiet and conservative, and believe in a small government to protect state freedom. They both believe “the proper role for government in America is to provide national defense, a court system for civil disputes, a criminal justice system for acts of force and fraud, and little