March 23, 1775: Patrick Henry gives "Liberty or Death" speech

Patrick Henry was born in Hanover County, Virginia on May 29, 1736. He spent his childhood at his father's farm, Studley. He was largely tutored at home until the age of 15. During his tutelage, he acquired a love of oratory from the Protestant ministering that grew out of the Great Awakening. In 1753, he began working at a tavern, where he met a young Thomas Jefferson. He married a neighbor of his named Sarah Shelton in 1754. While working at the tavern, he read law, and was admitted to the bar in 1760.

As a lawyer, he began to make a name for himself for his strong, impassioned oratory. He gained further prominence arguing in the Parson's Cause. In 1758, the Virginia House of Burgesses passed a law in which tobacco (which had reached inflated prices) could be purchased with the use of devalued currency. The King vetoed the measure. In 1763, an Anglican minister sued the colony over damages accumulated from the purchasing of the inflated tobacco. He was represented by Patrick Henry. While defending the minister, he gave a rousing speech not against the initial grievance but the grievance of the entire colony against the King's unjust veto. The jury sided with the defense, and Henry was praised as hero for his eloquent attack on an unpopular policy. His victory in the Parson's Cause, allowed him to run and be elected to the House of Burgesses. As a Burgess, he would fight against the Stamp Act. This further bolstered his reputation. In 1774, he was appoint to the Virginia Convention (an assembly of delegates which guided the colony of Virginia through the early years of the American Revolution), and the First Continental Congress in Philadelphia. When the Second Virginia Convention met in Richmond on March 20, 1775, Henry would further cement his name in the annals of American history.

Henry rose to speak on March 23, the third day of the Convention. The Convention was debating whether or not to send a petition of grievances to the King. The speech he gave lasted only 9 minutes but perfectly described the the conflict between Great Britain and her colonies with brevity and candor. He ended his speech with the eponymous phrase. The speech proved to be a watershed moment in Virginia's struggle with the King. Henry was capitulated into the highest ranks of Patriot leadership. He would become a beacon of light in the dark times Virginia would experience during the American Revolution.


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