Jon Kukla of Richmond, a noted biographer of Patrick Henry, will give a talk on the Virginia patriot at 7 p.m. on Thursday, July 24, at Mathews Memorial Library.
The line “Give me liberty or give me death” is known by almost all as having been uttered by Patrick Henry at St. John’s Church in Richmond on March 23, 1775, during the Second Virginia Convention. According to a press release, this line survived the centuries like no other from that period. It was uttered to persuade Virginia colonists to prepare for war against Great Britain. The phrase still reverberates today, some 250 years later, quoted on websites, in classrooms and in the media.
But the question remains—did he really say it? Numerous authors and historians have referenced it, but many observe that Henry did not write down the speech and the version known today was published 42 years later in an 1817 biography of him.
Kukla has directed research and publishing at the Library of Virginia and has authored multiple titles ...