Jeffersonian Republic

Jefferson's views on slavery are paradoxical, contrasting his advocacy for democracy with his reliance on enslaved labor.
Richard Hofstadter: Jefferson's writings on liberty were made possible by slave labor.
Historians have moved away from portraying Jefferson as a benevolent slave master due to historical and DNA evidence.

Jefferson's racial enigma lies in advocating liberty while owning enslaved people.
Critics like Hamilton questioned Jefferson's stance on race and his moral philosophy.
Hamilton highlighted the sexual exploitation of enslaved females on plantations.
Jefferson was deeply committed to slavery, hostile to the welfare of black people, and used pseudoscience to justify racism.
Unlike some contemporaries, Jefferson remained a buyer and seller of human beings.
Punishments for slaves were barbaric, even advocating cruel measures for free blacks.
Jefferson embodies collective denial and neuroses about slavery, race, and racism in America.

Rumors of Jefferson and Hemings existed since the 1790s, resurfacing during the 1804 presidential campaign.
Enslaved women were often treated as concubines or sex slaves, especially young girls referred to as "Fancy Girls".

Evidence includes 1998 DNA findings (99% accurate) and close readings of historical documents by Fawn Brodie (1974) and Annette Gordon-Reed (1997).
Key evidence: timing in Paris, Monticello records, paternity notes, naming patterns, and manumission.

Jefferson strategically located slave quarters out of sight to conceal the paradox of his life as a slave-owning planter.
Sally Hemings was the half-sister of Jefferson's wife and had children with Jefferson who were 7/8ths European.

Jefferson's ideology was put to the test as Americans sought to take Jeffersonianism at its word.
The Louisiana Purchase in 1803 doubled the nation's territory, raising questions about reconciling universalism with regionalism, race, sex, and class.

The Louisiana Purchase, while portrayed as an "Empire of Liberty," facilitated Native American removal and the expansion of slavery.
Factors of production during this time included land taken from Native Americans and labor from enslaved people.

The internal slave trade and cotton cultivation grew significantly.
The international slave trade was outlawed in 1808, but the domestic trade continued.

Indian Land Cessions 1784-1859 is exemplified by the continued dispossession of Native Americans.

Jefferson's embargo crippled American trade, leading to collapsed exports ( $108$ million to $22$ million), economic devastation in trading communities, and widespread smuggling.
Critics highlighted the embargo's negative impacts, with many Americans resorting to smuggling.