We need to forgive Thomas Jefferson

On the Seine’s left bank in the 7th Arrondissement stands a 10-foot-tall bronze statue, not to a French hero, but to Thomas Jefferson. The author of the Declaration of Independence and the United States of America’s third president served as a diplomat to France between 1784 and 1789. He was an admirer of France, even of the Revolution, before denouncing the atrocities committed by Robespierre and the Reign of Terror.

The statue was dedicated on July 4, 2006, commemorating the 230th anniversary of American Independence.