Give Me Liberty, or Give Me Death

Great Britain established its first American colony in 1607 and maintained imperial rule over American settlers until the 1776 signing of the Declaration of Independence. In the years leading up to the Declaration, King George III and Parliament ruled in ways that the colonists viewed as unjust; “taxation without representation,” or the imposition of taxes like the Stamp Act and the Tea Act on colonists who lacked parliamentary seats, was a particular sticking point. Colonial resistance to these taxes prompted crackdowns that further inflamed tensions, including the Boston Massacre of 1770 and the Coercive (or “Intolerable”) Acts of 1774. Among other things, the latter curtailed self-government in Massachusetts and required local authorities to provide housing for British soldiers (the “Quartering Act”). The 1774 First Continental Congress protested this state of affairs but did not yet vote for independence. It planned to meet again, but by the time it did so, the Revolution had already begun.

Henry delivered his speech after the First Continental Congress but before the outbreak of hostilities—a period during which events were unfolding very quickly. Henry’s urgent tone reflects this reality, and his contrasting depiction of