who was thomas jefferson

Thomas Jefferson was an American Founding Father and the third president of the United States, serving from 1801 to 1809. He was the principal author of the Declaration of Independence and a leading proponent of democracy, republicanism, and natural rights. Jefferson also served as the first U.S. secretary of state, the second vice president under John Adams, and was instrumental in the Louisiana Purchase that doubled the size of the United States. He founded the University of Virginia and was an advocate for religious freedom. Born into a Virginia planter family in 1743, Jefferson's legacy is complex due to his contributions to American liberty and his status as a slave owner.