Revolutionary Fever!

Continuing the posts of our recent trip to Williamsburg, Virginia...

Governor's Palace
After lunch, Emily and I toured the Governor's Palace in Colonial Williamsburg. Like most of the prominent historical buildings in town, the palace is a reconstruction. But like those other reconstructions, it was rebuilt on the original foundation and using historical evidence that allowed for a very close proximity to the original.

This was the home to the British governors of the colony of Virginia from Alexander Spotswood down to the outbreak of the Revolutionary War. And it remained the official residence of the American governors during the war until the capital was moved to Richmond during Thomas Jefferson's period as governor (1779-1781).

In fact, the palace reconstruction was not limited to the building itself. It includes a great deal of interior architecture and decoration. An inventory of the last British governor's household goods indicates that the walls were lined with over 500 weapons - flintlock muskets, swords, powder horns, etc. So the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation lined the reconstructed palace with the same number and type of weaponry. That kind of attention to detail adds a great deal to what would already be an impressive historical reconstruction.

Revolutionary Fever!
Following the tour of the Governor's Palace, we walked back down the Duke of Gloucester Street to take in the Saturday afternoon historical reenactment. It was a series of skits designed to show the social and political tension that existed in Williamsburg between 1773 and 1775.

At times funny and at times serious, these skits were done really well. There was a love story involving two of the wealthiest families in the colony, and there was a story about African slaves who ended up bitterly realizing that "freedom" didn't necessarily mean freedom for everyone. And of course, there were skits depicting the political machinations leading up to war. But the best part? The program concluded with a stunning performance by the Colonial Williamsburg Fifes & Drums, which is made up of high school-aged boys and girls from the area. The whole thing took two hours, and it was worth every minute.