Lion of Liberty by Harlow G. Unger

Harlow G. Unger's new book, Lion of Liberty: Patrick Henry and the Call to a New Nation, De Capo 2010, is a very readable biography of one of our founding fathers.  It covers his early life in frontier Virginia and gives amusing accounts of his very successful law career wherein he proved himself actor, showman and orator. Once in politics he all but owned the Virginia legislature that most often did his bidding.  It was here that he gave his famous"Liberty or Death" speech (included in an appendix).  He opposed slavery from the start as both non-economical and anti-moral, though he later owned slaves.  He was a fanatic about individual liberties and a great friend of the Baptist who suffered under the church tax for the Church of England. He resented taxes but thought they were sometimes necessary but had to be levied only with the consent of the taxed.  He was a major factor in the start and conduct of the Revolutionary War which is described in interesting detail.  At the end of the war he was suspicious of a strong federal type government and fought for states rights even to the point of opposing the 1787 Constitutional Convention which drew up the sacred document.  His opposition is described as forcing James Madison to introduce the Bill of Rights.  While for states rights, he was no friend of nullification by the states of federal (Congressional) laws and supported his close friend George Washington as President. Some wags note that he was the real "father of his country" because every time he returned home from an extended trip he and his wife would create a new Henry.  He had ten surviving sons and almost as many daughters, eighteen children altogether.  Together they provided him with seventy-seven grandchildren so more Americans are today descended from Patrick Henry than any other "founding father."  Were he alive today he would probably be a leader of the "Tea Party" organization and undoubtedly THE leader, with his emphasis on liberty and his suspicion of strong government.  Well worth the read for anyone interested in American history.

Reviewer: Mel Steely