Following ratification by the state of Virginia, the first 10
amendments to the U.S. Constitution, known collectively
as the Bill of Rights, become the law of the land.

American statesman Patrick Henry (1736-1799) delivers his patriotic "Give me liberty, or give me death" speech before
the Virginia Assembly in 1775.

A photograph of the Bill of Rights, as it appeared after having been passed by the House of Representatives of the United States in 1789. The document can be seen in the Federal Archives Building in Washington, D.C.