Give Me Liberty, or Give Me Death

“Great Britain” refers to the united countries of England, Scotland, and Wales, although at the time Henry delivered his speech, England was by far the dominant partner. Prior to America’s independence, the British Parliament and monarchy had control over the colonies, and over time, the colonists rejected Great Britain’s imperialism due to grievances including the Stamp Act, the Quartering Act, and the Tea Act. Britain is therefore the target of Henry’s criticism, with its ruler George III attracting particular scorn. As Britain was a world superpower in the late 18th century, Henry’s speech aims not only to persuade listeners of the necessity of rebellion but of its probable success.

Patrick Henry’s reference to “The House” refers to the Virginia House of Burgesses, the elected government of the colony. Though The House had technically been disbanded amid the escalation of hostilities between Britain and the colonies, its delegates assembled at St. John’s Church in Richmond, Virginia, on March 23, 1775, in the second of a series of five conventions. Henry uses the phrase “The House” to refer to this group of lawmakers, emphasizing their role in shaping the course of the potential revolution and their responsibility to protect the rights of their constituents. Many individuals who played key roles in developing the Declaration of Independence and eventually the United States Constitution were in the House of Burgesses, including George Washington and Thomas Jefferson.

In the Enlightenment era and its aftermath, the term “liberty” generally refers to the right of individuals to be free from oppressive government control; it was often viewed as a “natural” right, or one that people possessed merely by virtue of existing. Henry uses the term to emphasize the importance of freedom and to call attention to Britain as a threat to that freedom (developing the theme of Freedom Versus Tyranny). The function of the term is to motivate and inspire Henry’s audience to action, as Henry stresses that liberty is a value worth sacrificing for.