A Son of Thunder Patrick Henry and the American Republic

by Mayer, Henry

• ISBN13: 9780802138156
• ISBN10: 0802138152
• eBook ISBN(s): 9780802198099
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2001-05-16
• Publisher: Grove Press
• More Book Details
• Purchase Benefits

Summary

Patrick Henry was a brilliant orator whose devotion to the pursuit of liberty fueled the fire of the American Revolution. As a lawyer and a member of the Virginia House of Burgess, Henry spoke eloquently of the inalienable rights all men are born with. His philosophy inspired the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, and, most significantly, the Bill of Rights. Famous for the line "Give me liberty or give me death!" Patrick Henry was a man who stirred souls and whose dedication to individual liberty became the voice for thousands. A Son of Thunder is as eloquent, witty, charged, and charismatic as its subject.

Table of Contents

Preface	xiii
Prologue ``The Great Adversary''	7	(12)
PART ONE / 1736-1766
Backcountry Gentry	19	(13)
The Dilapidated Colonel's Son	32	(19)
``Bold License''	51	(16)
``Ancient Rights and Privileges''	67	(14)
``Young, Hot, and Giddy''	81	(20)
PART TWO / 1766-1773
``We Are All in Parties''	101	(15)
``Hunting Out Good Land''	116	(13)
``Virtual Obedience''	129	(28)
``The New Boanerges''	157	(24)
PART THREE / 1774-1776
``Hurrying to an Alarming Crisis''	181	(24)
``The Present Measures Lead to War''	205	(25)
``The Busy Voice of Preparation''	230	(19)
``A Man of Desperate Circumstances''	249	(19)
``From the Senate to the Field''	268	(18)
``I Own Myself a Democrat''	286	(25)
PART FOUR / 1776-1789
``A Thousand Things to Mend, to Begin''	311	(29)
``To Do Good and Prevent Mischief''	340	(31)
``Great Divisions Are Likes to Happen''	371	(25)
``I Speak the Language of Thousands''	396	(29)
``Overpowered in a Good Cause''	425	(15)
``Playing the After Game''	440	(23)
Epilogue ``My Secluded Corner''	463	(14)
Notes	477	(42)
Acknowledgments	519	(2)
Index	521