Thomas Jefferson was the main author of the Declaration of Independence and a major intellectual of his time. He also was the 3rd president of the United States. In the text of the Declaration of Independence , he wrote about inalienable rights such as the right to life, to liberty and pursuit of happinness, and the natural equality of all men as God´s gifts. Later, in another public speech, he said that God gave us life and liberty. He also appealed to his fellow citizens not to change the conviction that nation´s liberties are a gift from the Almighty.