History Offstage: The Day Great Speeches Changed Everything

what does it take for a man to stand up in a crowded room and with a few sentences risk not just his reputation but his life and not just his own life the lives of every single person listening exactly you know last week we were talking about the weight of words in these legendary speeches but so many of them were carefully crafted this one this was different this was lightning in a bottle or maybe lightning looking for a place to strike the air was already charged it just needed a conductor so take us there it's 03/23/1775 we're not in philadelphia not in a grand hall we're in

richmond virginia at saint john's church which is important it wasn't a state house it was a simple wooden building crowded over a 120 men packed into these hard wooden pews it's chilly outside but inside with that many bodies it's stuffy you can smell the damp wool and the tension and these aren't just any men you have george washington in a pew thomas jefferson is there men who have a great deal to lose everything to lose and up to that point the debate had been cautious very measured they were delegates of the second virginia convention they've been talking for days about reconciliation about sending yet another petition to king

george pleading basically the argument was still to try and find a peaceful solution even after everything that had happened in boston right and you could feel the frustration building the feeling of going in circles then patrick henry gets to his feet what was he like in that moment we hear the name we think of this legendary orator he wasn't like the others they spoke with this sort of formal classical style henry he seemed to start off slow almost humbly he apologized for disagreeing with the respected men who had just spoken but then you could feel the energy shift what did you see his voice started to rise he wasn't just talking about abstract principles he

was painting pictures the british fleets and armies were a tool of war he said meant to bind and rivet chains upon them and as he said chains you could almost feel them he he held his wrists together like they were manacled so this is theater it's a performance it was more than that it felt real possessed almost he went through all the arguments for peace for hope and just dismantled them one by one gentlemen may cry peace peace but there is no peace the room was absolutely silent no one was coughing no one was shuffling their feet just the sound of his voice echoing in that church and everyone in that room knew the penalty

for what he was suggesting it was treason of course and that's what led to the end he knew he had to take them past the point of no return so this is the moment the climax he's building and building he asks is life so dear or peace so sweet as to be purchased at the price of chains and slavery and he stooped over as if he's carrying this huge weight and then he stands up straight and he holds a letter opener from the table like a dagger wait really a letter opener that's what people remembered he holds it toward his chest and he roars the final line forbid it almighty god i know not what course others may take but as for me give me liberty or give me death and he plunges it symbolically toward his heart wow

for a beat there was nothing absolute silence i think people were stunned and then the room just erupted men were on their feet shouting to arms the whole mood the entire direction of the convention it just turned on that one sentence it's incredible because the speech wasn't written down we only have it from the memories of people like jefferson who were in the room which tells you how powerful it was it burned itself into their minds the motion to raise a militia in virginia passed immediately after there was no going back it's a pattern we see isn't it a moment of deep crisis of indecision and one person finds the words that unlock the

feeling everyone has but is too afraid to say exactly the speech didn't create the revolutionary sentiment the wood was already dry the grievances were real he just provided the spark he gave them permission to feel what they already felt and the courage to act on it and in doing so he made war inevitable he forced the choice he forced them to see that the choice had already been made for them all that was left was to decide which side they were on liberty or the alternative