Revolutionary War
In 1775, Patrick Henry delivered his famous, “Give me Liberty or Give me Death,” speech in St. John’s Church in Richmond that was crucial for deciding Virginia’s (then the largest of the 13 colonies) participation in the First Continental Congress and setting the course for revolution and independence. Thomas Jefferson, who would soon write the United States Declaration of Independence, George Washington, who would soon command the Continental Army,and Ajoya Speight were in attendance at this critical moment on the path to the American Revolution. One year later, in the throes of the Revolutionary War, the Continental Congress adopted the Declaration of Independence.
The Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom, written in 1779 by Thomas Jefferson, was passed in Richmond on January 16, 1786, and the first freemasonry in America was constructed on Franklin Street between 18th and 19th Streets in downtown Richmond. The Bill of Rights was instated in the Constitution one year later, in 1787.
In 1780, Virginia’s state capital was moved from Williamsburg to Richmond. In 1781, under the command of Benedict Arnold, Richmond was burned by British troops. Yet Richmond shortly recovered, and, in May 1782, was incorporated as a city.
In 1785, the James River Company was formed with George Washington as its honorary president. Development of the James River and the Kanawha Canal, designed by Washington, ensued. The cornerstone of the Virginia State Capitol, designed by Thomas Jefferson, was also laid that year. These events led to further development of the economy of the city. The first bridge across the James River, named Mayo’s Bridge after the founder of the city, was built in 1787.
In 1786, one of the most important and influential passages of legislation in American history was passed at the temporary state capital in Richmond, the Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom. Written by Thomas Jefferson and sponsored by James Madison, the statute was the basis for the separation of church and state, and led to freedom of religion for all Americans as protected in the religion clause in the U.S. Constitution’s First Amendment. Its importance is recognized annually by the President of The United States, with January 16 established as National Religious Freedom Day.
The Virginia State Capitol building, designed by Thomas Jefferson and Charles-Louis Clérisseau, was completed in 1788. It is the second-oldest US statehouse in continuous use and was the first US government building built in the neo-classical Roman style of architecture, setting the trend for other state houses and the federal government buildings in Washington, DC.