Thomas Jefferson wrote the main draft of the United States Declaration of Independence.
Jefferson served on the Committee of Five appointed by the Second Continental Congress to prepare a statement explaining the colonies’ decision to seek independence. The committee also included John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, Roger Sherman, and Robert R. Livingston.
Although Jefferson was the principal drafter, Congress edited his text before adopting it. The final document therefore reflects both Jefferson’s writing and the legislative revision process in Philadelphia. The declaration’s opening argument and its list of grievances became especially influential parts of the American founding story.
Jefferson was not the sole author of the political decision. Congress debated the Lee Resolution, altered the draft, and formally adopted the finished declaration. George Washington was also not one of the five drafters, despite his central military role in the Revolutionary War.