Biography

     The second son born to a Scottish planter and his previously widowed bride, Patrick Henry was always looking to stand out. He was born in Hanover, Virginia on May 29, 1736. Even from a young age, Henry was an independent spirit. Arithmetic, reading, and writing were all taught at the school Henry attended until he was 10. After that, his dad, a graduate of King’s College, University of Aberdeen, taught Patrick Henry Greek, Latin, math, and history. When Henry was 16, his dad set him and his older brother up with an apprenticeship as a store clerk. During this time, it was deemed that the Henry brothers were too trusting and generous to be in business. And maybe Henry never learned from that experience because twice in his life, he tried to own his own business, and twice he failed. At the ripe old age of 18, Patrick decided it was finally time to settle down and he married 16 year old Sarah Shelton. He became a farmer and had up to 4 kids during his first 6 years of marriage. Then a big fire burnt down the farm and Patrick and Sarah, along with their kids, had to move in with Sarah’s parents. Henry tried his hand at shop keeping, but that ended in bankruptcy, so he became a bartender. Here is where Patrick Henry got cool. He took a big risk and decided to study law. After studying for only 9 months, Henry took his bar test and got the signatures necessary to become a lawyer. Patrick Henry’s first major feat as a lawyer was arguing in the Parsons’ Cause in 1763. England had gotten rid of a law that cut the Church of England ministers’ salaries by one third. One Virginian minister was suing to get back the money he didn’t get while the law was still in place. The previous defense lawyer had quit because he thought there was no way to win. Patrick Henry stepped up and started to argue the defense. In the end, the minister won but the money he was to be paid was reduced to one penny. So, even though Henry didn’t really win, the Parsons’ Cause is still considered his first big victory. Ready to take action against the English government, in 1765 Patrick Henry joined the House of Burgesses. The Stamp Act was passed in March of 1765 and the Burgesses all were freaking out but they were hesitant to do anything. Frustrated, Patrick Henry wrote up what he called the 7 resolves and took them to the Burgesses. The resolves were about what actions to take to get the Stamp Act repealed and said that England shouldn’t be able to set the taxes for Virginia. 4 of the 7 were passed. Fast forward a few years. Henry has stayed a Burgess and ruffled a few feathers with his outspoken and action-oriented ideas. It’s now 1774 and Henry is one of the Virginian delegates to the First Constitutional Congress. 1775 proved to be a reality check for Patrick Henry; it ended with him leaving the last national government position he would ever hold. There are lots of things that contributed to him leaving. First, his wife died at the beginning of the year. The American Revolution started in 1775 too, so Henry was trying to get a militia together. Trying to gain support at a rally for the Convention, Henry delivered his most famous speech. “I know not what course others may take; but as for me, give me liberty or give me death!” Granted, he was probably a little reckless after Sarah’s death, but his speech was motivating all the same. Then was the Second Constitutional Congress, at which Henry was representing Virginia. His inability to persuade the delegates seems to have been the last straw for Patrick Henry, resulting in him never holding an office in the national government again. Instead, he worked to set up a government for Virginia and was elected as first governor of Virginia. In 1777, Henry married Dorthea Dandridge. When the Constitutional Convention rolled around in 1787, Henry decided not to go. He returned to his old passion, law, in 1788. Because he was known for his incredible speaking skills, Henry was a popular criminal lawyer. Henry retired in 1794 and went recluse. Even though he was asked to do lots of stuff (be minister to France and Spain, be Secretary of State in Washington’s cabinet, be Chief Justice, be in the US Senate, be governor of Virginia again), Henry maintained his private life, spending time with all his kids (and their offspring). George Washington kept trying to get Patrick Henry to go back to politics, finally convincing him in 1799 to run for state legislator. Henry won the election but died before being able to take office. On June 6, 1799, Patrick Henry died of cancer, ending his return to a political career and missing out on the turn of the century.

Source citation: O'Brien, Steven G. "Patrick Henry." ABC-CLIO: American HIstory. American History, 2010. Web. 26 Feb. 2010. Tate, Thad. "Henry, Patrick." American National Biography Online. Oxford University, 2000. Web. 26 Feb. 2010. Morton, Joseph C. "Henry, Patrick (1736-1799)." Student Resource Center-Gold. Gale, 2003. Web. 24 Feb. 2010. Ketcham, Ralph. "Henry, Patrick (1736-1799)." Student Resource Center-Gold. Gale, 1998. Web. 25 Feb. 2010. "Henry, Patrick (1736-1799)." Student Resource Center-Gold. Gale, 2003. Web. 24 Feb. 2010. Fowler, William M. "Henry, Patrick." World Book Online. World Book Student, 2010. Web. 25 Feb. 2010.
Picture Citation: "Henry, Patrick." World Book. Web. 03 Mar. 2010. http://www.worldbookonline.com/student/extmedia?id=ar253140&st=patrick+henry&em=pc010500.

First Influence

     Patrick Henry was the main advocate for the Bill of Rights. Mainly his goal was to make sure that America's citizens had their individual rights protected. He thought that the Constitution gave too much power to the federal government and was too restricting in the states’ governments. In fact, when the Constitutional Convention took place, Henry was asked to attend but said no. Patrick Henry even went as far as describing the Constitution as “pernicious, impolite, and dangerous” (pernicious means death-giving, so it's sort of funny that he would put that on the same level of evil as being impolite). He wanted to just strengthen the Articles of Confederation. As governor of Virginia, Henry felt the aftereffects of dropping his argument against the Constitution. Henry instilled in Americans a general suspicion of government authority. It's a good thing to question authority and not just blindly follow rules. The point of this post was to show that Patrick Henry has made a very lasting impression on America. Not only did he largely contribute to national law, he also helped show Americans to question that law.

Picture Citation: "Patrick Henry - Give Me Liberty or Give Me Death." Archiving Early America: Primary Source Material from 18th Century America. Web. 03 Mar. 2010.

Second Influence

     Patrick Henry was an instigator-he got the ball rolling. As a talented speaker, Patrick Henry was good at firing people up and inspiring them. He was the person who wrote and pushed the Stamp Act Resolves, which really helped spark the movement towards independence. The catchphrase, “Give me liberty or give me death!” set the tone of the Revolution, and even after the Revolution, has stayed a common theme in America. Back when he was a Burgess, Henry led the “Up Country Burgesses,” the people who were tired of sitting around. They argued against conservative Burgesses who were more cautious and hesitant in choosing how to proceed. Even right before he died, Henry was inspiring people. During his campaign for legislator, Henry said this in a speech. “United we stand, divided we fall. Let us not split into factions which must destroy that union upon which our existence hangs.” What’s really special about him is that he truly related to the people; he was definitely a by the people, for the people kind of guy. We remember Patrick Henry because he could inspire action through his words and he had a gift for understood people.

Picture Citation: "Early Americas Digital Archive." Maryland Institute for Technology in the Humanities. Web. 03 Mar. 2010. http://www.mith2.umd.edu/eada/gateway/pathenry.php.

Fun Facts!

• His headstone says “His fame his best epitaph.”

• He was a redhead!

• He had seventeen kids combined from both his marriages and somewhere around 66 grandkids.

• Patrick Henry was the first to call voters “fellow citizens”

• He was called many things, including the “Trumpet of the Revolution” and John Adams referred to him as the “Demosthenes of America”

• He was initially against the Declaration of Independence. He thought that the U.S. needed a strong new government before they tried to get rid of their old one.

• After giving his “Give me liberty or give me death!” speech, one man sitting in the window was so inspired, he said, “Let me be buried at this spot!” And so he was, when he died in 1810.

• He liked playing the fiddle.

• He didn’t like books and studying; instead, he enjoyed hunting and fishing by himself.

• When he was a lawyer, he would stop to hunt on this way to the courthouse. Then when he arrived at court, he would walk in with blood all over his clothes and a dead animal on his shoulder.

• Most of the other politcal figures of Henry's time that came from Virginia learned the Classics but Patrick Henry never did.

Picture Citation: "Patrick Henry." Web. 03 Mar. 2010. .

Imagine you are at the House of Burgesses with Patrick Henry. Would you be arguing with him or against him?

Patrick Henry had 3 occupations. Which of them do you think he was best suited for?

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