Lost Chapters
Thomas Jefferson: Quartz Character
Thomas Jefferson (1743 to 1826) was the main author of the Declaration of Independence and the third president of the United States, serving from 1801 to 1809. He made the Louisiana Purchase and founded the University of Virginia, and over his lifetime he held more than 600 people in slavery.
- Cost
- 3 crystals
- Type
- Character · Founder
- Power / Health
- 2 / 3
- Color
- Quartz (Founders & Revolution)
- Rarity
- Ultra-Rare (Legacy)
- Set
- Liberty & Lightning (Set 1)
On play: search your deck for a Location.
While you control John Adams, gets +1/+1.
Renaissance politician who penned independence, doubled America's size, and still found time for extensive home renovations.
The real history
Jefferson was born on April 13, 1743, at Shadwell, his father's plantation in colonial Virginia. He studied at the College of William and Mary, trained in law with George Wythe and won a seat in the House of Burgesses in 1769. On a mountain near his boyhood home he designed his house, Monticello.
In 1776 the Second Continental Congress chose him to draft the Declaration of Independence. Its claim that people are equal in rights came to be seen as a charter of American and universal liberties. Back in Virginia he wrote the Statute for Religious Freedom, passed in 1786. He then served as governor of Virginia, minister to France and the first secretary of state under Washington.
Jefferson became the third president in 1801, the first peaceful handover of power from one party to another. In 1803 he bought the Louisiana Territory, doubling the size of the country, and he backed the Lewis and Clark expedition. In retirement he founded the University of Virginia, designing its buildings and serving as its first rector. He died at Monticello on July 4, 1826, the 50th anniversary of the Declaration.
The author of those words about equal rights enslaved more than 600 people during his life, about 200 in a typical year, and freed only ten, all from the Hemings family. Monticello concludes that, years after his wife died, Jefferson fathered at least six children with Sally Hemings, an enslaved woman at Monticello who, according to family accounts, was his late wife's half sister. Four of the children lived to adulthood, and he eventually freed all of them. He never freed Sally Hemings herself.
Sources
- Brief Biography of Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Jefferson's Monticello
- Thomas Jefferson and Sally Hemings: A Brief Account, Thomas Jefferson's Monticello
- Slavery FAQs, Thomas Jefferson's Monticello
How the card plays
Thomas Jefferson costs 3 crystals and is a 2/3 Ultra-Rare Quartz Founder, so he counts as a Legacy card. When he arrives, search your deck for a Location and put it in your hand. He also gets +1/+1 while you control John Adams.
He is legal under the George Washington Leader, whose passive makes him a 2/4 from the start.
Use him to find National Convention, which gives your Founders +1/+1 and makes them cost 1 less, or Mount Vernon if you want a cheap Location that adds 2 power to your Leader. You can only have one Location at a time, so pick the one your hand needs. Pair him with John Adams: Adams switches on Jefferson's +1/+1 and gives every Founder +1/+0 on top, making Jefferson a 4/4 for 3 crystals.
- Playable in decks led by George Washington, and by any Traveler Leader whose colors include Quartz.
- In the Washington starter deck (1 copy). Deck code:
LC2-BhoCgAKBAYIBgwGEAYUBhgKHAYgBiQGKAYsBjAKNAY4BjwGQAZEBkgGTAZQBlQGWAZcBmAGZAZoCmwGcAZ0BngGfAaABoQFBjA - Works with John Adams.
- A deck holds up to 3 copies of this card.
Questions about Jefferson
What did Thomas Jefferson put on his gravestone?
He wrote his own epitaph listing three things: author of the Declaration of Independence and of the Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom, and father of the University of Virginia. He left off the presidency.
Did Thomas Jefferson start the Library of Congress?
Not exactly, but in retirement he sold his collection of almost 6,500 books to the government, and it became the core of the Library of Congress. He then started buying books again.
Card art
The standard version of Thomas Jefferson. The Full Art above is a rare version that can appear in packs.
Related cards
John Adams7 crystals · Character · Uncommon
Abraham Lincoln, Emancipator6 crystals · Character · Legendary
Benjamin Franklin5 crystals · Character · Ultra-Rare
Alexander Hamilton, Young Hopeful2 crystals · Character · Rare
John Hancock1 crystal · Character · Uncommon
Thomas Paine2 crystals · Character · Uncommon
Free in your browser. No download.
Play Jefferson free