A Summary View of the Rights of British America

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A Summary View of the Rights of British America - Wikipedia

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A Summary View of the Rights of British America

A Summary View of the Rights of British America was a tract written by Thomas Jefferson in 1774, before the U.S. Declaration of Independence, in which he laid out for delegates to the First Continental Congress a set of grievances against King George III, especially against the King's and the Parliament of Great Britain's response to the Boston Tea Party. Jefferson declares that the Parliament did not have the right to govern the Thirteen Colonies. He argues that since the individual colonies were founded they were independent of British rule.^[1]

Jefferson, in this work, held that allodial title, not feudal title, was held to American lands, and thus the people did not owe fees and rents for that land to the British crown.

Despite being a life-long slave owner, Jefferson included a strong condemnation of slavery in the tract, writing "The abolition of domestic slavery is the great object of desire in those colonies, where it was unhappily introduced in their infant state. But previous to the enfranchisement of the slaves we have, it is necessary to exclude all further importations from Africa; yet our repeated attempts to effect this by prohibitions, and by imposing duties which might amount to a prohibition, have been hitherto defeated by his majesty's negative: Thus preferring the immediate advantages of a few African corsairs to the lasting interests of the American states, and to the rights of human nature, deeply wounded by this infamous practice."^[2]

The work was presented to, and debated by, the First Continental Congress. When this took place, Jefferson did not attend. Despite his attempts, Congress agreed to a more moderate decision than Jefferson's proposed concept. Despite not being able to completely convince Congress, friends of Jefferson printed the Summary in a pamphlet form. It was distributed throughout London, New York and Philadelphia. Research states that the document "helped establish Jefferson's reputation as a skillful, if radical, political writer."^[1]

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This article incorporates text from a webpage created by the World Digital Library, which is written and created by the Federal government of the United States and is thus in the public domain.

v t e Thomas Jefferson
3rd President of the United States (1801–1809) 2nd Vice President of the United States (1797–1801) 1st United States Secretary of State (1790–1793) U.S. Minister to France (1785–1789) Delegate to the Congress of the Confederation (1783–1784) 2nd Governor of Virginia (1779–1781) Delegate to the Second Continental Congress (1775–1776) Delegate, Fifth Virginia Convention (1776)
Founding documents of the United States	A Summary View of the Rights of British America (1774) Olive Branch Petition (1775) Declaration of the Causes and Necessity of Taking Up Arms (1775) Declaration of Independence (1776) Committee of Five physical history "All men are created equal" "Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness" "Consent of the governed" Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom (1786) Land Ordinance of 1784 Land Ordinance of 1785
French Revolution	Co-author, Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen (1789)
Presidency	Act Prohibiting Importation of Slaves Louisiana Purchase Lewis and Clark Expedition Empire of Liberty Dunbar and Hunter Expedition Red River Expedition Pike Expedition Cumberland Road Embargo Act of 1807 Chesapeake–Leopard affair Non-Intercourse Act First Barbary War Native American policy Burr conspiracy Marbury v. Madison West Point Military Academy State of the Union Addresses 1801 1802 1805 Cabinet Federal judicial appointments
Other noted accomplishments	Early life and career Franco-American alliance Founder, University of Virginia history Ratification Day Anti-Administration party Democratic-Republican Party Jeffersonian democracy Coinage, Weights, and Measures report (1790) Residence Act Compromise of 1790 Kentucky and Virginia Resolutions A Manual of Parliamentary Practice (1801) Jefferson disk Swivel chair Megalonyx
Jeffersonian architecture	Barboursville Farmington Monticello gardens Poplar Forest University of Virginia The Rotunda The Lawn Jefferson Hall Virginia State Capitol White House Colonnades
Other writings	The Papers of Thomas Jefferson Notes on the State of Virginia (1785) Pyratical states of Barbary proposals (1786) European journey memorandums (1787) Indian removal letters The Life and Morals of Jesus of Nazareth (c. 1819) Jefferson manuscript collection Founders Online
Related	American Enlightenment American Philosophical Society Founding Fathers of the United States Historical reputation Jefferson and education Religious views Jefferson and slavery Jefferson and the Library of Congress Jefferson Pier Pet mockingbird National Gazette Sally Hemings Jefferson–Hemings controversy Betty Hemings Separation of church and state Tufton Farm Governor's Palace (Williamsburg, Virginia) Virginia dynasty Ward republic
Elections	Presidential elections 1796 1800 1804
Legacy and memorials	Bibliography Jefferson Memorial Mount Rushmore Birthday Thomas Jefferson Building Jefferson River Jefferson Territory Jefferson Lecture Jefferson National Expansion Memorial Thomas Jefferson Star for Foreign Service Statues Karl Bitter Louisville University of Virginia David d'Angers Jefferson Literary and Debating Society Thomas Jefferson Foundation Jefferson Lab Monticello Association Jefferson City, Missouri Jefferson College Thomas Jefferson University Washington and Jefferson National Forests Peaks and mountains Jefferson Rock Other placenames Jefferson–Jackson Day Currency depictions Jefferson nickel Two-dollar bill Louisiana Purchase Exposition gold dollar 250th Anniversary silver dollar U.S. postage stamps
Cultural depictions	The Patriots (1946 play) 1776 1969 musical 1972 film Jefferson in Paris (1995 film) Thomas Jefferson (1997 film) John Adams (2008 miniseries) Jefferson's Garden (2015 play) Hamilton (2015 musical) Wine bottles controversy Cultural depictions of Sally Hemings
Family	Martha Jefferson (wife) Martha Jefferson Randolph (daughter) Mary Jefferson Eppes (daughter) Harriet Hemings (daughter) Madison Hemings (son) Eston Hemings (son) Thomas J. Randolph (grandson) George W. Randolph (grandson) Ellen Randolph Coolidge (granddaughter) Cornelia Jefferson Randolph (granddaughter) Francis Eppes (grandson) John Wayles Jefferson (grandson) Sarah N. Randolph (great-granddaughter) T. Jefferson Coolidge (great-grandson) Frederick Madison Roberts (great-grandson) Peter Jefferson (father) Jane Randolph Jefferson (mother) Lucy Jefferson Lewis (sister) Randolph Jefferson (brother) Peter Carr (nephew) Samuel Carr (nephew) Dabney Carr (nephew) Dabney S. Carr (grand-nephew) Isham Randolph (grandfather) William Randolph (great-grandfather) Henry Soane (2nd great-grandfather)
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Origins of the American Revolution: writings

American resolves, declarations, petitions, essays and pamphlets prior to the Declaration of Independence (July 1776)

Following the
Stamp Act (1765)

Virginia Resolves (May 1765)
Braintree Instructions (September 1765)
Declaration of Rights and Grievances (October 1765)
Leedstown Resolutions (February 1766)
An Inquiry into the Rights of the British Colonies (1766)

Following the
Townshend Acts (1767)

Letters from a Farmer in Pennsylvania (1767, 1768)
Massachusetts Circular Letter (February 1768)
Journal of Occurrences (1768, 1769)
Virginia Association (May 1769)
Boston Pamphlet (1772)
Sheffield Declaration (January 1773)

Following the
Coercive Acts (1774)

Maryland	Chestertown Resolves (May 1774) Talbot Resolves (May 1774) Bush River Resolution (March 1775)
Massachusetts	Suffolk Resolves (September 1774)
New York	Orangetown Resolutions (July 1774) A Full Vindication of the Measures of Congress (December 1774) The Farmer Refuted (February 1775)
North Carolina	Rowan Resolves (August 1774) Edenton Tea Party (October 1774) Mecklenburg Resolves or Declaration (May 1775) Liberty Point Resolves (June 1775) Tryon Resolves (August 1775) Halifax Resolves (April 1776)
Virginia	Fairfax Resolves (July 1774) Fincastle Resolutions (January 1775) Augusta Resolves (February 1775) Augusta Declaration (May 1776) Virginia Declaration of Rights (June 1776)
First Continental Congress	Declaration and Resolves (October 1774) Continental Association (October 1774) Petition to the King (October 1774)
Second Continental Congress	Olive Branch Petition (July 1775) Declaration of the Causes and Necessity of Taking Up Arms (July 1775) May 15 preamble (May 1776) Lee Resolution (July 1776)

Essays and pamphlets

The Rights of Colonies Examined (1764)
"Letters to the Inhabitants of Canada" (1774, 1775, 1776)
A Summary View of the Rights of British America (1774)
Novanglus (1775)
Common Sense (January 1776)
Thoughts on Government (Spring, 1776)

Journals of the Continental Congress

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