What are the Federalist Papers?

I'm sure most, if not all of you have heard of the Federalist Papers, and most probably know they deal with and talk about the Constitution. But beyond that I find fewer people know what the Federalist Papers are.

After the Convention of 1787, also known as the Constitution Convention, the future of the proposed Constitution was anything far from certain. In fact, the future of the drafted Constitution was very much in doubt, and had fierce opposition from the outset, including from delegates who participated in the Convention. Some states were fairly quick to ratify the Constitution in their respective State Conventions, but several, including New York were not so fast to act.

The Constitution required nine States to ratify it, to cause it to go into effect for those states that ratified, meaning it could take just five State to reject it and prevent it implementation. The times were desperate for the young nation, the Articles of Confederation were failing (Why the Articles of Confederation failed) and without the problems under the Articles of Confederation fixed, the economy, dignity and governments of the United States would almost certainly fall. The proposed Constitution was written to address these issues and complete the American Revolution.

 

The Federalists Papers, also known simply as "The Federalist", are a series of 85 papers written by Alexander Hamilton, James Madison and John Jay to the people of New York supporting the then proposed Constitution and an attempt to persuade the state to vote for Ratification in their pending Convention. The papers were written from October 1787 to August 1788, and appeared in the Independent Journal, New York Packet and the Daily Advertiser.

Alexander Hamilton was from New York as was John Jay, but Hamilton had attended the Convention. James Madison was from Virginia, also attended the Convention and had great influence in its design. Madison was asked by Hamilton to assist in the these writings based on his knowledge and ability to persuade in arguments. John Jay was a well known diplomat who participated in the Treaty of Paris, ending the fighting of the American Revolution. During the Convention Jay was the Secretary of Foreign affairs (predecessor to the Secretary of State) and is part of the reason he did not attend the Convention.

Written under the pen name "Publius", the three combined to present the first complete argument for the Constitution. The Federalist Papers cover nearly every aspect of the new Constitution, and describe how the various parts were designed to function. In addition, the Federalist also describe the nature of government, going into the relationship of the Federal Government and the State Governments, and its relationship with the People. At the time of the publishing of these articles nobody knew exactly who "Publius" was, which was common in the debates and publications of Ratification. Anti-Federalist writings against ratification also used pen names like Centinel, Brutus and Cato. The Federalist also address concerns brought up by the Anti-Federalists, such as the size and role of the Federal Government, limiting that government, Individual Rights, States Rights, economic freedom and a Bill of Rights.

The Federalist Papers, give the Original Argument for the Constitution in the public forum, that addressed the entire Constitution, and what its scope would be. Though prior to Publius, arguments had already been made supporting the Constitution in the public, none to that point were as in depth and so widely disseminated to the public. The Federalists were not greeted well by all, they immediately drew criticism in the press from Centinel and Brutus, both whom had published articles before the Federalists, and from other Anti-Federalists in articles against ratification. But in the end, the Federalist argument and Publius prevailed, with New York Ratifying the Constitution on July 26, 1788, a month before the final Federalist Paper.

The Federalist Papers have withstood not only the test of time in their importance and connection to this important debate. The Federalist have also influenced courts, by providing valuable insight into the Original Argument for the Constitution. The Federalist Papers were first cited in 1798 by the Supreme Court, and since than over 300 times in all.

However, given their significant historical value, they are most certainly not the only arguments ever presented either for or against the Constitution. The Federalist Papers show a very keen insight into the design of the Constitution and are a valuable tool in understanding the why or how various aspects of the Constitution were meant to be. When combined with the other arguments, both for and against the Constitution in the press and more importantly in the State ratification debates, you can only then get the best and fullest description of what the Constitution meant to the framers and those who ratified it. The Federalist Papers, are definitely a good place to start in this quest.