It is March 23, 1775, and the Second Virginia Convention meets in St. John's Church. A man named Patrick Henry, an Anti-Federalist, is called upon to propose his resolutions for the creation of a militia, or an army in which Virginia will have a defense. His resolutions transform into an evocative speech, which arouses unwavering curiosity and a call to action. Henry's resolutions to obtain a militia were approved by the Second Virginia Convention. After the Convention, the Battle of Lexington and Concord emerged, starting the American Revolutionary War. Patrick Henry, despite having a large involvement in the American Revolution, disagreed with the founders over their desire to establish a strong central government, their ratification of the Constitution, and their inability to place limits on government power. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay Patrick Henry's political career began in April 1760, when he passed the bar exams and began practicing law. On 20 May 1765 he was elected to the House of Burgesses. Then, Henry helped create the Virginia Committee of Correspondence with the purpose of aiding communication within the colonies. On September 5, 1774, Patrick Henry attended the First Continental Congress as a delegate from Virginia. And as stated earlier, Patrick Henry gave a very famous speech called “Give Me Liberty Or Give Me Death” on March 23, 1775. His speech was intended to influence the people of Virginia to fight against British tyranny. Some colonists, similar to Patrick Henry, aimed to end “Benign Neglect,” or the ability of a group of people to ignore a situation that obviously needs change. Henry tried to put an end to the institution of things like that of the Stamp Act, which was a tax imposed by Britain on the colonists for every piece of paper they used. One way Patrick Henry brought about change was that he strongly supported the ideas contained in the Articles. of the Confederation, and sought to strengthen its implementation and detail. It aimed to further explain the functions of a national government with the intention of moving away from a strong governing public. Henry was an Anti-Federalist, that is, a person against ratifying the Constitution or a person who did not like the idea of ​​establishing a federal government. When Henry was asked why he did not support ratification of the Constitution, Henry responded with "I smelled like a mouse." Patrick Henry openly declared his views and sought the need for personal liberties, things which he found important to avoid being a monarchy like the British one but without becoming a strong central government, which Henry also did not desire. Patrick Henry also widely supported setting limits on government power, influencing him to help ratify the first ten amendments to the Constitution. Henry advanced his influence to define his views and distrust of the developing government society. In the Anti-Federalist Papers, which were works written to demonstrate people's concern for the instruments within the Constitution. Patrick Henry wrote a piece for the Anti-Federalist newspapers in which he stated: “Show me that time and country where the rights and liberties of the people were based on the only possibility of their rulers being good men without a consequent loss of liberty ! I affirm that the loss of the dearest privilege has always followed, with absolute certainty, every such foolish attempt." (Bill of Rights Institute) Patrick Henry also expressed thehis dislike for the establishment of the Constitution for not participating in the Constitutional Convention of 1787 with reasons such as “he feared that the meeting was a plot by the powerful to build a strong central government of which they would be masters”. (Bill of Rights Institute) James Madison, one of the founding fathers, knew Henrydisdain and “the leader of the Virginia Federalists, to promise the addition of a bill of rights to the Constitution once the document had been approved.” (Bill of Rights Institute) Virginia then became the tenth state to ratify the Constitution. Henry's remarks show his thoughts on creating a strong central government. Henry's methods were all aimed at solidifying his fear of past British tyranny. He did not want such an oppressive government to continue. When Patrick Henry refused to attend the Constitutional Convention of 1787 because of his reservations about its ratification, George Washington sent him a copy of the Constitution, Henry is said to have responded with "I must complain that I cannot bring my mind to agree with the proposed Constitution". (Encyclopedia of Virginia) In Patrick Henry's speech, "Give me liberty or give me death," he stated "I know no other way to judge the future than by the past." (Colonial Williamsburg) His famous speech was heard by many in 1775, Patrick Henry's views were known. He thought further action was needed to provide Virginia with a militia, but overall he wanted a way to provide the colonies with a defense against their past government society. Which is similar to other civilizations, throughout history the main goal to gain freedom was to not be controlled by a tyrant, this can be seen in Rome, Athens and even the Anglo-Saxon influence in London. Henry's opposition to the founders on some issues are all very consistent or logical in the time period. An effective solution to avoid past government failures according to Patrick Henry was to place limits on government power. Perhaps one of Henry's concerns about the Constitution was its enumerated powers, which establish all that congress can do, set forth in section eight, article one. However, in a June 4, 1788 speech to the Virginia Convention, Henry stated: “The states are the features and soul of a confederation. If the states are not the agents of this compact, it must be a great, consolidated national government formed by the people of all the states.” (Red Hill) Perhaps Henry had difficulty with section ten of article one of the Constitution which describes distributing equal liberties to all of society. Patrick Henry, in a speech on June 7, 1788, even said: “If your American leader be an ambitious and capable man, how easy it will be for him to make himself absolute!” (Bill of Rights Institute) Preventing a monarchy and tyranny became very important to Patrick Henry and even became his motivation for his political choices and his influence on others. One way he thought he would maintain freedom was to put more governmental power in the hands of the states. Others may disagree with Patrick Henry's stance on the limits of government power due to his respect for Founding Fathers such as George Washington. In a June 3, 1788 speech to the Virginia Convention, Henry even states: "I have the greatest respect for those gentlemen who formed the Convention, and, if some of them were not here, I would express to them some testimony of esteem." Red Hill) Henry considered George Washington a man of great worth and appreciated his strides toward change even with his difference of opinion on some issues.)