Definition
Alexander Hamilton, James Madison and John Jay published eighty-five essays in New York newspapers between October 1787 and May 1788, all signed with the shared pen name Publius. Hamilton wrote most of them, and Jay wrote five. The essays aimed to persuade New Yorkers to ratify the Constitution, and they answered Anti-Federalist objections such as the claim by Brutus that a free republic had to stay small. In Federalist No. 10, Madison argued that a large republic would hold so many factions that no single one could take control, and in Federalist No. 51 he explained how separation of powers and checks and balances would make ambition counteract ambition.
Why it matters on the AP exam
The essays are the main source for the Federalists' side of the ratification debate, and questions often quote No. 10 on faction or No. 51 on checks and balances and ask how the author answered critics of the Constitution. Paired with Anti-Federalist writings such as Brutus, they test the argument over whether liberty is safer in a small republic or a large one. They also show Enlightenment influence, especially Montesquieu's separation of powers, and courts still cite them when interpreting the Constitution.
In the sources
“If men were angels, no government would be necessary.”
Connections
- Federalists: the supporters of the Constitution for whom the essays spoke
- Anti-Federalists: the opponents whose objections, including Brutus's, the essays answered
- John Jay: one of the three authors, who wrote five of the essays
- Ratification of the Constitution: the essays were written to win approval in New York
Study it in context
Topic 3.8: The Constitutional Convention and Debates over Ratification Watch this part