• Jefferson is claimed by both left and right, he remains elusive and controversial. Personally he was a shy and introspective man.
• He was a brilliant thinker, in office capable and pragmatic, but he was not a great president.
• Jefferson personified the contradictions in republicanism: He despised ceremonies and formality and dedicated himself to intellectual pursuits. Still, he was a politi-cian-he realized that his success as president would depend on cooperation with Congress.
• Jefferson's View of Man was shaped by his experiences during the early days of the French Revolution. He approved of the French foray into new government forms, but he was slow to deplore the violence. He said, "The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots and tyrants."28
• His public life was characterized by conflict with Hamilton, Adams and even Washington from time to time. His most enduring political friendship was probably with James Madison, who moved from the Federalist camp to become a stalwart of Jeffersonian democracy and the Democratic-Republican Party.
• Jefferson spent almost his entire life in significant debt, partially caused by others, but also brought on by his taste for furnishings, books, wine and other fineries, as well as his lavish spending on Monticello. He was unable to make a stable income from farming.
• Jefferson loved music, education learning; he collected books—after the War of 1812 his library became the core of the Library of Congress.
World History
