The Federalist Papers

ReFederlist Papers and the Bill of Rights

​Why did people agree to this?

The Federalist commonly referred to as the Federalist Papers, is a series of 85 essays written by Alexander Hamilton, John Jay, and James Madison between October 1787 and May 1788. The essays were published anonymously, under the pen name "Publius," in various New York state newspapers of the time.

​What were the Federalist papers?

In lobbying for the adoption of the Constitution over the existing Articles of Confederation, the essays explain particular provisions of the Constitution in detail. For this reason, and because Hamilton and Madison were each members of the Constitutional Convention, the Federalist Papers are often used today to help interpret the intentions of those drafting the Constitution.

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​What did they say?

​The Anti-Federalist papers are a selection of the written arguments against the US Constitution by those known to posterity as the Anti-Federalists. As with the Federalist papers, these essays were originally published in newspapers. The most widely known are "a series of sixteen essays published in the New York Journal from October 1787 through April 1788 during the same period. The Anti-Federalist was appearing in New York newspapers, under the pseudonym 'Brutus'

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Multiple Choice

Who was not a writer of the Federalist Papers?

• Alexander Hamilton

• John Jay

• Aaron Burr

• James Maddison

Multiple Choice

What was the point of the Federalist Papers?

• To convince people that the constitution was bad

• To convince people that the constitution was good

• To convince people that Britain needed to be dealt with

• To convince people that the Articles of confederation needed to be reinstated

Multiple Choice

How many were written?

• 100

• 16

• 75

• 85

Multiple Choice

The Anti-Federalist points were published under what name?

• Brutus

• Nero

• Caesar

• Shakespeare

​THe Points...

People were very concerned that the new government would be to powerful and start robbing people of their rights. The Federalists did their best to explain to people how their rights were actually being protected in this new government and how it can not turn tyrannical. It emphasized the importance of the common man's participation. It did also try to convince people that a Bill of Rights was not needed because when you write down your rights, they can be rewritten and changed. ​

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https://guides.loc.gov/federalist-papers/full-text#:~:text=The%20Federalist%20Papers%20were%20written,in%20the%20summer%20of%201787.

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​THe Bill of Rights

​Despite their best efforts to convince the people otherwise, the Federalists eventually gave in to the notion. They did not like it, but the writing was on the wall and the American people distrusted the government and wanted protections in writing. Thus the bill of rights was created.

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​Many Americans, persuaded by a pamphlet written by George Mason, opposed the new government. Mason was one of three delegates present on the final day of the convention who refused to sign the Constitution because it lacked a bill of rights.

​James Madison, once the most vocal opponent of the Bill of Rights, introduced a list of amendments to the Constitution on June 8, 1789, and “hounded his colleagues relentlessly” to secure its passage.

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​The Bill of RIghts Continued

Madison had come to appreciate the importance voters attached to these protections, the role that enshrining them in the Constitution could have in educating people about their rights, and the chance that adding them might prevent its opponents from making more drastic changes to it.​

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​The House passed a joint resolution containing 17 amendments based on Madison’s proposal. The Senate changed the joint resolution to consist of 12 amendments. A joint House and Senate Conference Committee settled the remaining disagreements in September. On October 2, 1789, President Washington sent copies of the 12 amendments adopted by Congress to the states. By December 15, 1791, three-fourths of the states had ratified 10 of these, now known as the “Bill of Rights.” https://www.sethkaller.com/item/182-First-Draft-of-the-Bill-of-Rights:-17-Amendments-Approved-by-the-House

Open Ended

In a brief sentence or two, explain why people wanted a Bill of Rights.

Multiple Choice

Who introduced the Bill of Rights to be voted on?

• James Maddison

• John Jay

• Andrew Johnson

• George Mason

Multiple Choice

How many amendments were originally introduced?

• 10

• 20

• 4

• 17

Multiple Choice

How many were originally accepted into the Bill of Rights?

• 20

• All 17

• 10

• Only 6