Richard Henry Lee (1732-1794), American patriot and statesman, led early resistance in Virginia to British rule. He introduced into the Continental Congress the resolution declaring American independence.

Richard Henry Lee was born into a family long prominent in Virginia's history. Stratford, the family home, in which Lee was born on Jan. 20, 1732, was one of the stateliest mansions in Virginia. Lee received an education befitting a wealthy planter's son--private tutors at home and then Wakefield Academy in England. By the age of 26 he was already a justice of the peace in Westmoreland Country and a member of the House of Burgesses.

One of Lee's first speeches in the House, an impassioned denunciation of the slave trade, helped establish his reputation as an orator, second only to Patrick Henry. With Henry he shared leadership of the "progressive" faction in the House and led the colony's vigorous opposition to the new...