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The label Federalist refers to two major groups in the history of the United States of America: (1.) those statesmen and public figures supporting ratification of the proposed Constitution of the United States between 1787 and 1789; and (2.) those statesmen and public figures supporting the administrations of President George Washington ( 1789 – 1797) and President John Adams ( 1797 – 1801). The two groups are not synonymous, and several Federalists of the first variety were not Federalists of the second (the most notable examples being Thomas Jefferson and James Madison). Opponents of these groups were called " Anti-Federalists" and " Democratic-Republicans", respectively.1 Types of Federalists
The first type of Federalist was distinguished by advocacy of the ratification of the Constitution which would have created a stronger Federal Government (hence the name). It is not a true political party, in fact, but a faction, which met to fight for one cause, and then died down afterwards. The most forceful statement of Federalist principles was The Federalist, a series of 85 essays written in New York CitySkyline, with Statue of Liberty New York, New York" redirects here. For alternate meanings, see New York, New York (disambiguation). New York — officially named City of New York and often called New York City to distinguish it from the state of New York, to convince the people of the State of New YorkNew York is a state in the northeastern United States whose U. postal abbreviation is NY . It is sometimes called New York State when there is need to distinguish it from New York City. History See: History of New York New York was one of the thirteen col to vote for ratification. These articles, written by Alexander HamiltonAlexander Hamilton ( January 11, 1755 or 1757 1 July 12, 1804) was an American statesman, journalist, and lawyer. He is credited as being America's greatest constitutional lawyer. As the principal author of the Federalist Papers, he successfully defended, James Madison, and John JayChief Justice of the United States John Jay ( December 12, 1745— May 17, 1829) was an American politician, statesman, revolutionary, diplomat and jurist. He is noted for serving with Benjamin Franklin and John Adams in France and writing part of the Feder, examined the defects of the Articles of ConfederationThe Articles of Confederation was the first governing document of the United States of America. The Articles combined the colonies of the American Revolutionary War into a loose confederation. The second Continental Congress adopted the Articles of Confed and the benefits of the new, proposed Constitution, and analyzed the political theory and function behind the various articles of the Constitution. The Federalist remains one of the most important documents in American political science.
The second type of Federalist was essentially a conservative in the traditional sense, i.e., a supporter of the party of government (the Federalists originally controlled all three branches). More specifically, the term came to be associated with the policies of Alexander Hamilton, the first Secretary of the TreasuryThe United States Secretary of the Treasury is the finance minister of the Federal Government of the United States. He or she is head of the United States Department of the Treasury, concerned with finance and monetary matters and, until 2003, some issues; these policies included the funding of the national debt, the assumption of State debts incurred during the Revolutionary War, the incorporation of a national Bank of the United States, the support of manufactures and industrial development, the use of a light tariff and domestic incentives to encourage economic growth, strict neutrality in the French Revolutionary Wars, and the creation of a strong army and navy. Generally speaking, Hamiltonian policies were pursued in the Washington Administrations, and to a lesser extent, the Adams Administration.
These Federalists were not a political party as that term is understood today; the Founding Fathers detested political parties as divisive "factions", and it is more appropriate to think of Federalists as holders of a political philosophy (cf. conservative, liberal) rather than an ideology. Federalist members of the Congress voted according to their principles and conscience rather than along party lines or according to party dictates. Hamilton himself ghostwrote Washington's Farewell Address in 1797, wherein Washington famously warned against political parties.
