The Federalist Was A Collection Of Essays

Lastly, they believed that without a Bill of Rights, the federal government would become tyrannous.These arguments created a powerful current against adopting the Constitution in each of the states.In Massachusetts, arguments between the Federalists and Anti-Federalists erupted in a physical brawl between Elbridge Gerry and Francis Dana.

Their collected speeches, essays, and pamphlets later became known as the “Anti-Federalist Papers.” While each of the Anti-Federalists had their own view for what a new constitution for the United States should look like, they generally agreed on a few things.

First, they believed that the new Constitution consolidated too much power in the hands of Congress, at the expense of states.

(The identify of Cato was reportedly then-New York Governor George Clinton, pictured here.) Most Americans know of the Federalist Papers, the collection of essays written by Alexander Hamilton, John Jay, and Madison, in defense of the U. When the Constitution was drafted in the summer of 1787, its ratification was far from certain; it still needed to be ratified by at least nine of the 13 state legislatures.

The failure of the Articles of Confederation made it clear that America needed a new form of government.

In state legislatures across the country, opponents of the Constitution railed against the extensive powers it granted the federal government and its detraction from the republican governments of antiquity.

In Virginia, Patrick Henry, author of the famous “Give Me Liberty or Give Me Death” speech, called the proposed constitution, “A revolution as radical as that which separated us from Great Britain.” In the Essays of Brutus, an anonymous author worried that without any limitations, the proposed Constitution would make “the state governments…There were several major influences stated in the Federalist.Among them John Locke (Federalist 2), Montesquieu (Fed.Originally, they were numbered with Roman numerals but later reprinted with Arabic numerals. 10 by James Madison, where he argues that a union of the States will better combat factions, even factions within an individual State. 78 by Alexander Hamilton, he explained why the federal judiciary should always be the "least dangerous" branch.On the Supreme Court, the five most cited Federalist Papers are: Federalist 42, Federalist 78, Federalist 81, Federalist 51, and Federalist 32.It then grew to include Patrick Henry, Samuel Adams, and Richard Henry Lee, heroes of the Revolutionary War who objected to the Constitution’s consolidation of power.In time, the various opponents to the new Constitution came to be known as the Anti-Federalists.The Federalist Papers serve as a primary source for interpretation of the Constitution, as they outline the philosophy and motivation for the proposed system of government.Hamilton, Madison and Jay wanted to encourage the ratification and also set the standard The Federalist Papers are a series of 85 articles encouraging the ratification of the United States Constitution.Hamilton, Madison and Jay wanted to encourage the ratification and also set the standards for future interpretation of the Constitution.This book is essential for understanding the beginnings of the greatest democracy in the modern world.