Chapter 2 Summary and Analysis

Jefferson rode into Paris in an even fancier carriage than the one that had conveyed him to Philadelphia. The elaborate phaeton had been handcrafted by slaves at Monticello and sent by ship to Europe. He was accompanied by his twelve-year-old daughter, Martha, a tall, angular girl who was usually called Patsy. She was quickly installed in a convent boarding school. A nineteen-year-old mulatto slave named James Hemings accompanied Jefferson as his personal servant. Jefferson hoped that the slave would learn the fine art of French cookery during their time in Paris.

Jefferson's fame had increased, although he was not generally known as the author of the Declaration of Independence. His political career was best described as undistinguished. He had served two ignoble years as Governor of Virginia, from 1779 to 1781. The war made massive concessions necessary. Under Jefferson's guidance, the state's economy...