Last week the White House issued a proclamation anticipating the 250th anniversary of Patrick Henry’s famous speech, “Give Me Liberty.”

Our Nation proudly commemorates the 250th anniversary of Patrick Henry’s address to the Second Virginia Convention — a seminal moment in our great American story and a fateful turning point in America’s epic struggle for Independence.

. . . At a moment when America’s fate hung in the balance, Henry’s words sparked daring action in the souls of patriots, fortified the cause of freedom, and set America on the path to ultimate triumph over forces of tyranny and oppression. By a narrow margin, the Second Virginia Convention passed the resolution to form a militia — the first critical step to Independence.

“It is not now easy to say what we should have done without Patrick Henry,” Thomas Jefferson later wrote. “He was before us all in maintaining the spirit of the Revolution.”

As we approach the 250th anniversary of our Nation’s Independence on July 4, 2026, we look to Patrick Henry, a son of the frontier, the first and sixth Governor of Virginia, an unflinching advocate for American Independence, and a true man of his moment. Today, we invoke his courage, we honor his legacy, and we fearlessly summon the spirit of 1776 to build a future that we will be proud to impart on our children.

— Patrick Henry Proclamation 2025