Give Me Liberty, or Give Me Death

The god that Henry references throughout his speech is the Abrahamic god, and more specifically the god of Christianity: omnipotent and omnibenevolent. Henry was a devout Christian, but his use of religious language and imagery is also a rhetorical tactic. Henry invokes God to emphasize the seriousness of the situation and to bolster the colonists’ confidence: Because religious belief was so common, the notion that Divine Providence favored the colonies’ cause would have been very comforting.

“Great Britain” refers to the united countries of England, Scotland, and Wales, although at the time Henry delivered his speech, England was by far the dominant partner. Prior to America’s independence, the British Parliament and monarchy had control over the colonies, and over time, the colonists rejected Great Britain’s imperialism due to grievances including the Stamp Act, the Quartering Act, and the Tea Act. Britain is therefore the target of Henry’s criticism, with its ruler George III attracting particular scorn. As Britain was a world superpower in the late 18th century, Henry’s speech aims not only to persuade listeners of the necessity of rebellion but of its probable success.