This groundbreaking biography has been universally acclaimed as a landmark work on Thomas Jefferson's early and mature years. Mapp follows Jefferson from his birth in 1743 through the American Revolution and up until his inauguration as President of the United States in 1801. Along the way we rediscover Jefferson the student at William and Mary, the Virginia politician, and the foreign diplomat. In these pages, Mapp sheds new light on Jefferson's career and private life. The portrait is rich and full of a living complexity that defies the simple sketches often offered by those who would either canonize or demonize this reluctant founding father.