Federalist Papers

The Federalist Papers is a collection of 85 articles and essays written by Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, and John Jay. After delegates from each state were brought in to try and fix what was wrong with the Articles of Confederation, they then began to work on what would become the U.S. Constitution. However, when Congress released the proposed Constitution for ratification in 1787, reaction and criticism came quickly from newspapers throughout the country, condemning the reworking of the Articles. In New York State, a member of the convention, along with two other men he recruited, began writing a series of articles defending the proposed Constitution. Signing the essays 'Publius', they released seventy-seven articles in newspapers over a period of several months. The following year, they were collected and published in book form, and the authors added another eight essays. Although many had guessed who the authors were, it wasn't until a few years later that they were confirmed as Alexander Hamilton, John Jay, and James Madison. There is debate as to what influence the Papers had on the ratification of the Constitution. However, their influence within the judiciary system has been great, being quoted around 300 times in Supreme Court cases. This is mainly because what those three authors wrote explains not only the content of the U.S. Constitution but also the reasons for the content.