People

Author of the Declaration of Independence who served as Virginia's wartime governor from 1779 to 1781. Jefferson supported moving the capital to Richmond but was criticized for his handling of Benedict Arnold's raid, which exposed the new capital's vulnerability and damaged his political reputation.

Virginia planter and politician who served in the Continental Congress, signed the Declaration of Independence, and succeeded Jefferson as governor in 1781. Harrison's administration managed the state through the final years of the war and the aftermath of Cornwallis's surrender.

The former Continental hero who led a British raiding force up the James River and occupied Richmond in January 1781. Arnold's raid destroyed military stores and public records, humiliated Governor Jefferson, and demonstrated the vulnerability of Virginia's new capital.

Delivered his "Give me liberty, or give me death" speech at St. John's Church in Richmond on March 23, 1775, arguing that Virginia must prepare for war with Britain. The speech, though reconstructed from memory decades later, became the Revolution's most famous call to arms.

Prussian military officer who served as the Continental Army's inspector general and was sent to Virginia to organize the state's defenses. Steuben struggled with insufficient troops and resources as he attempted to resist British raiding forces in 1781.

Virginia militia officer whose campaigns in the Illinois Country and along the Ohio River frontier extended Virginia's Revolutionary War effort far to the west. His capture of British posts at Kaskaskia and Vincennes in 1778-1779 helped secure American claims to the Northwest Territory.

Richmond lawyer and militia commander who organized local defense efforts during Arnold's raid. Innes later served as Virginia's attorney general and was known for his legal expertise and his frustration at the inadequate military resources available to defend the capital.

Mistress of Westover plantation on the James River near Richmond, who navigated the dangerous politics of the Revolution after her husband's death. Her property was occupied by both British and American forces at different times, and she was accused of Loyalist sympathies while trying to protect her family and estate.