Which Virginia law written by Thomas Jefferson became an early landmark for religious freedom?

The Virginia law written by Thomas Jefferson that became an early landmark for religious freedom was the Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom.

The Virginia General Assembly enacted the statute in 1786 after years of debate over the relationship between government and religion. It declared that people should be free to profess their religious opinions and that civil rights should not depend on religious beliefs. The law ended state support for religious instruction based on compulsory taxes.

Jefferson drafted the proposal in 1777, but James Madison helped defeat a competing plan that would have provided broader public support for Christian teachers. Madison’s opposition contributed to the statute’s adoption in its stronger form. Jefferson regarded the measure as one of his important achievements and included it among the accomplishments he wanted recorded on his tombstone.

The statute influenced later American thinking about religious liberty and helped shape the principles behind the First Amendment. It is not the same document as Virginia’s 1776 Declaration of Rights, which addressed broader natural rights and government principles.