Towns

VA, USA

Richmond

Lesson plans and classroom materials.

Patrick Henry's Speech and the Decision for War

6-8 · 2 class periods

What you'll get

  • 5 primary sources with analysis prompts
  • Quiz with answer key (5 questions)
  • 3 printable handouts
Print full packet
6-82 class periodsCCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RH.6-8.6: Identify aspects of a text that reveal an author's point of view or purposeCCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RH.6-8.8: Distinguish among fact, opinion, and reasoned judgment in a textD2.His.9.6-8: Classify the kinds of historical sources used in a secondary interpretation

Learning Objectives

  1. Describe the political context of the Second Virginia Convention (March 1775) and explain why it met in Richmond
  2. Analyze Patrick Henry's speech as reconstructed by William Wirt and assess the challenges of historical memory
  3. Evaluate the Convention's decision to prepare Virginia for war and identify arguments on both sides
  4. Connect Richmond's role in 1775 to its emergence as Virginia's state capital in 1780

Essential Questions

  • We don't have a transcript of Henry's actual words. How do historians work with speeches that were never recorded? What can we trust, and what can't we?
  • Why did the Virginia Convention need to debate whether to prepare for war in March 1775? Who was arguing against it?

Procedure

Primary Sources

Thomas Jefferson to Steuben, January 12, 1781 (Arnold's Raid Correspondence)

Library of Congress, Thomas Jefferson Papers · PRIMARY · Tier 1 — Primary/Academic

View source

Benedict Arnold's Dispatch to Sir Henry Clinton: Report on the Richmond Raid, January 1781

Public Record Office (National Archives, United Kingdom) · PRIMARY · Tier 1 — Primary/Academic

Virginia Executive Papers and Council Journals, 1779-1781

Library of Virginia · PRIMARY · Tier 1 — Primary/Academic

View source

Virginia Convention at St. John's Church, Richmond: Proceedings, March 1775

Library of Virginia · PRIMARY · Tier 1 — Primary/Academic

Richmond National Battlefield Park: Revolutionary War Resources

National Park Service · INSTITUTIONAL · Tier 1 — Primary/Academic

View source

Handouts & Materials

Richmond Event Timeline

timeline

Students place key events in chronological order and add details

Primary Source Analysis

graphic organizer

Structured analysis of Revolutionary-era documents

Key Figures Profile

worksheet

Research template for Revolutionary figures

Richmond in the American Revolution

Answer the following questions based on our study of Revolutionary history.

1.

What makes Richmond significant in Revolutionary history?

AIt was the site of important Revolutionary events
BIt had no connection to the Revolution
CIt was founded after the Revolution
DIt was a British stronghold throughout the war
2.

Primary sources are documents or objects created during the time period being studied.

TTrue
FFalse
3.

Name one event that occurred in Richmond during the Revolutionary period and explain its significance.

4.

Why is it important to consider multiple perspectives when studying history?

ADifferent people experienced events differently
BIt makes history more confusing
COnly one perspective is ever correct
DPerspectives don't matter in history
5.

Describe one connection between this town and another Revolutionary-era town we discussed.