The Federalist Papers

The Federalist Papers are a series of 85 articles about the United States Constitution, first published serially in New York City newspapers (the Independent Journal, the New-York Packet and the Daily Advertiser) between October 27, 1787 and May 28, 1788. A compilation, called The Federalist, was published in 1788.

The articles were intended to explain the new Constitution to the residents of New York state and persuade them to ratify it. The articles were written under the pseudonym "Publius" by James Madison, Alexander Hamilton, and John Jay. Madison is generally credited as the father of the Constitution and became the fourth President of the United States. Hamilton was an influential delegate at the Constitutional Convention, and later the first Secretary of the Treasury. John Jay would become the first Chief Justice of the Supreme Court. Hamilton penned the majority, Madison made several significant contributions to the series, Jay wrote but a handful.

The Federalist Papers serve as a primary source for interpretation of the Constitution. They also outline the philosophy and motivation of the proposed system of government, as it was presented by Madison, Hamilton, and Jay. The authors of the Federalist Papers were not above using the opportunity to provide their own "spin" on certain provisions of the constitution to (i) influence the vote on ratification and (ii) influence future interpretations of the provisions in question.

Federalist No. 10 and Federalist No. 51 are generally regarded as the most influential of the 85 articles; 10 advocates for a large, strong republic, 51 explains the need for separation of powers.

[Top]

Readings

Dietze, Gottfried, The Federalist: A Classic on Federalism and Free Government, Baltimore: The Johns Hopkins Press, 1960.
Epstein, David F., The Political Theory of the Federalist, Chicago: The University of Chicago Press, 1984.
Gray, Leslie, and Wynell Burroughs, "Teaching With Documents: Ratification of the Constitution," Social Education, 51 (1987): 322-324.
Patrick, John J. and Clair W. Keller, Lessons on the Federalist Papers: Supplements to High School Courses in American History, Government and Civics, Bloomington, IN: Organization of American Historians in association with ERIC/ChESS, 1987. ED 280 764.
Schechter, Stephen L., ed., Teaching about American Federal Democracy, Philadelphia: Center for the Study of Federalism at Temple University, 1984. ED 248 161.
Yarbrough, Jean, "The Federalist" This Constitution: A Bicentennial Chronicle, 16 (1987): 4-9. SO 018 489.

[Top]