biography
| sex:
| male
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| lived:
| (1736–99)
|
| biography:
| Orator and political leader, born in Hanover Co, Virginia, USA. He took up law in 1760 after failures in business and farming. He vigorously opposed the Stamp Act (1765), and was a delegate to the First and Second Continental Congresses. In 1775 he proposed revolutionary motions to the Virginia assembly, including one for the arming and training of militiamen. He carried the day with a speech that included ‘I do not know what course others may take, but as for me, give me liberty or give me death’. He was governor of Virginia (1776–9, 1784–6) and he opposed the new Constitution (1787) because he felt it endangered individuals' and states' rights. He retired from public life in 1788 and refused several offers of posts in the federal government. He was influential in the creation of the Bill of Rights (1791). Although he became reactionary in his later years, his dramatic presence was considered to be integral to the early patriot cause. |
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