“It is in vain, sir, to extenuate the matter. Gentlemen may cry, Peace, Peace– but there is no peace. The war is actually begun! The next gale that sweeps from the north will bring to our ears the clash of resounding arms! Our brethren are already in the field! Why stand we here idle? What is it that gentlemen wish? What would they have? Is life so dear, or peace so sweet, as to be purchased at the price of chains and slavery? Forbid it, Almighty God! I know not what course others may take; but as for me, give me liberty or give me death!” – Patrick Henry.

Patrick Henry, a prominent figure in the American Revolution and one of our Founding Fathers, is most famous for the legendary, “Give me Liberty, or give me Death!” speech that he made in a court hearing on March 23, 1775 at St. John’s Church in Richmond, Virginia. Allegedly delivered without notes, Henry’s speech was so persuasive that it is credited with having swung the balance in convincing the Virginia Houses of Burgesses to pass the resolution that delivered the Virginia troops to the Revolutionary War.

To one listener, the words sounded “as the doom of Fate.” A Baptist parson who was there recalled the speech’s beginning in a smolder and ending in a blaze: “The tendons of his neck stood out white and rigid, like whipcords. His voice rose louder and louder, until the walls of the building and all within them seemed to shake and rock. . . . Finally his pale face and glaring eyes became terrible to look upon. Men . . . strained forward, their faces pale and their eyes glaring like the speaker’s. . . . When he sat down, I felt sick with excitement.”

Because there are no notes or existing transcriptions of the speech, some controversy remains as to whether Henry actually delivered the most famous line of the speech as is quoted. Nonetheless, Henry was undoubtedly a remarkable orator, and his speeches were widely compared to those of the legendary Roman wordsmith Cato.

What Do You Think? »

       

Leave a Reply

You must be logged in to post a comment.