Patrick Henry

Born in Virginia in 1736, Patrick Henry became one of the best-known speakers of the revolutionary era. Trained as a lawyer, he first gained wide attention for challenging royal authority in the Parson's Cause, a case that showed both his bold politics and his gift for persuasion.

He is most closely linked with the call for resistance to British rule, especially the speech traditionally remembered for the line "Give me liberty, or give me death!" In the years that followed, he served as the first post-colonial governor of Virginia and remained an influential public figure during the struggle for independence.

Henry never attended the Constitutional Convention, and later he became known for criticizing the proposed U.S. Constitution because he feared it gave too much power to the national government. He died in 1799, leaving behind a reputation as one of early America's most memorable political voices.