Every Man’s War and Every Man’s Fight
In Patrick Henry’s speech, The War Inevitable Speech, to the Virginia House of Burgesses, he justifies the urgency of a rebellion against the motherland of Great Britain and the boundless tyranny, oppression, and taxation of that which comes alongside. Henry then illustrates the reasoning behind the crucial decision to arm the Virginia Militia and how a British attack was almost imminent. The claims that Parliament appeased to the colonists and that the colonists were unappreciative and unpatriotic are not only false, but paradoxical as well.
“I ask, gentlemen, sir, what means this martial array, if its purpose be not to force us to submission? Can gentlemen assign any other possible motive for it? Has Great Britain any enemy, in this quarter of the world, to call for all this accumulation of navies and armies? No, sir, she has none. They are meant for us; they can be meant for no other.” There is no room for interpretation with this statement. It is clear that Britain is accumulating mass troops for an occupation of the colonies and without the bearing of arms, any retaliation would have been nonexistent; and if there were any of some sorts, they would not have even stood a chance against a military super power like that of Great Britain.
“And judging by the past, I wish to know what there has been in the conduct of the British ministry for the last ten years, to justify those hopes with which gentlemen have been pleased to solace themselves, and the House?” The assertion that Parliament appeased to the colonies is anything but accurate. If anything, Parliament strengthened its grip on the colonies by enacting direct and indirect taxations and punishing them for insubordination. The taxations that were instated were harsh and overbearing and are including but not limited to the Sugar Act, the Stamp Act, the Townshend Act, and the Tea Act. The first of two acts of revolt was the burning of the Gaspee schooner and the second being the Boston Tea Party in which colonists dumped £9,000 worth of tea into the Boston Harbor. They were punished for these acts of defiance with the Intolerable Acts, which stripped the colonies of self-government.
“Should I keep back my opinions at such a time, through fear of giving offence, I should consider myself as guilty of treason towards my country, and of an act of disloyalty toward the majesty of heaven, which I revere above all earthly kings”. This statement by Henry, saying that withholding his words would be treason against his country does prove that the colonists were not patriotic towards Great Britain but also proves that they couldn’t be patriotic. With virtually no representation in Parliament and without the recognition of citizenship by other citizens, why would they be patriotic?
Lastly, the declaration of independence was not for selfish purposes of wealthy Bostonians but rather to rid all Americans from the unjust power of British crown.
Patrick Henry’s speech ultimately persuaded colonists, whether they be rich or poor, or from Boston or Jamestown, to unify under a common goal of revolution. The question of whether or not Parliament appeased, the colonists were unappreciative, or if it was a rich man’s war but a poor man’s fight, can be answered simply by Henry’s most known quote, “Give Me Liberty or Give Me Death.”