Inside the Vault: A Summary View of the Rights of British America
by Gilder Lehrman Staff
On April 7, 2022, our curators were joined by Professor Andrew Robertson to discuss A Summary View of the Rights of British America. Written in 1774 by Thomas Jefferson, this document laid out the principal point that he would argue more closely in the Declaration of Independence: the British Parliament had no right to legislate for the colonies in any instance. It also helped establish Jefferson’s national reputation.
Click here to download the slides from the presentation.
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- Background of the document: 3:52–10:18
- Quotes from the document and Q&A: 10:23–55:55
- What comes next?: 56:00–1:05:45
Additional Resources
- Essay: “The Road to Revolution” by T. H. Breen
- Lesson Plan: “Teaching the Revolution” by Carol Berkin
- Online Exhibition: Timeline: “The American Revolution”
- Video: “The Independence of the States” by David Armitage
- Video: “Jefferson as Revolutionary” by Frank Cogliano
- Video: “Reason and Emotion and Revolutionary America” by Nicole Eustace
- Video: Historians Now: “The American Revolution: Writings from the Pamphlet Debate, 1764-1776” by Gordon S. Wood
- Video: “American Scripture: The Making of the Declaration of Independence” by Pauline Maier