| Thomas Jefferson | |
|---|---|
 Promotional poster | |
| Genre | Historical drama Miniseries |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language | English |
| No. of episodes | 6 |
| Production | |
| Production companies |
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| Original release | |
| Network | History Channel |
Thomas Jefferson is a 2025 American television documentary miniseries. The six-part miniseries chronicles the life of Thomas Jefferson, a Founding Father and third President of the United States, and premiered on February 17, 2025, on History. [1] [2] [3]
| No. | Title | Directed by | Original release date [4] | U.S. viewers (millions) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | "A Revolutionary is Born (1743-1773)" | Jon Hirsch | February 17, 2025 | TBD | |
Born into one of the most powerful first families of Virginia in 1743, Thomas Jefferson grows up in an unrecognizable America as we see today. From his upbringing at Shadwell plantation with enslaved people serving him to becoming a patriarch as a teen, left to run Tuckahoe plantation after his father died. In his twenties, as Jefferson attends William & Mary to study law, he starts to learn about The Enlightenment way of thinking. He serves in the House of Burgesses and writes about emancipation, advocating the end of slavery. However, when he marries a wealthy slave owner's daughter, Martha Wayles, he inherits her late father's property and enslaved family, the Hemings, including Sally who bore six of his children. After getting settled at a work-in-progress Monticello, the colonies become restless after the Stamp Tax Act comes into law for funding England's war effort overseas. Like-minded colonists form the Sons of Liberty and are responsible for the Boston Tea Party. Jefferson and elitists stand in solidarity, forming their own resistance for independence of British rule. | |||||
| 2 | "Independence (1774-1776)" | Jon Hirsch | February 17, 2025 | TBD | |
It is a confusing time for colonists; they either continue living under British tyranny or rebel against it, becoming traitors. The Continental Congress is born, and they have their first meeting secretly in Philadelphia's state house. However, a 31-year-old Jefferson isn't invited...yet. He then writes A Summary View of the Rights of British America in 1774 and gets noticed. He becomes a delegate in the second meeting and meets John Adams and Benjamin Franklin who both entrust him, being the best writer in the Committee of Five into drafting a Declaration of Independence. In his initial draft, he blames King George III about bringing slavery to the colonies, but it is eventually omitted in the final draft. When the Royal Governor of Virginia tries to persuade the enslaved to fight on the King's side with his Dunmore's Proclamation promising their freedom, it becomes clear that a war for independence is inevitable. | |||||
| 3 | "Jefferson at War (1777-1784)" | Jon Hirsch | February 18, 2025 | TBD | |
As General George Washington leads rag-tag Colonial miltias into battle against the mighty British Army, Jefferson takes a statesman civilian role. He drafts laws reforming the government by separating church and state with help from James Madison. When Jefferson is sworn in as the governor of the commonwealth of Virginia, the American Revolutionary War raging up north finally arrives on his doorstep. Instead of protecting the capital as trader Benedict Arnold and his dragoons move in, he goes back to Monticello. Jefferson, an intellectual with no military experience, flees with his family, bringing much ridicule from the public. After more than three weeks of intense fighting at the Battle of Yorktown, General Cornwallis and his troops surrender, and the war is over. Jefferson returns to his home of slave-labor and writes his first book, Notes on the State of Virginia of his views and beliefs on Native Americans and black people. He also spends time with his wife, however, it's short-lived as Martha dies shorty after her sixth pregnancy. After going into a deep depression, his peers send him to France as a diplomat. | |||||
| 4 | "Jefferson in Paris (1784-1793)" | Jon Hirsch | February 18, 2025 | TBD | |
| 5 | "President Jefferson (1793-1809)" | Jon Hirsch | February 19, 2025 | TBD | |
| 6 | "Jefferson's Legacy (1809-1826)" | Jon Hirsch | February 19, 2025 | TBD | |
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