Federalist Papers begin publication

On October 27, 1787, the Independent Journal of New York printed the first essay of The Federalist under the pseudonym Publius. Alexander Hamilton launched the series and soon joined James Madison and John Jay in defending the proposed Constitution before the New York ratifying convention met. The essays then appeared in New York newspapers through 1788 as the ratification fight intensified.

The Federalist essays addressed a political crisis created by the Constitution's uncertain reception in large states such as New York and Virginia. Hamilton, Madison, and Jay sought to explain how a stronger Union could protect liberty better than the Articles of Confederation had done. Their newspaper campaign therefore turned the ratification struggle into a sustained public argument over representation, faction, executive power, and the judiciary.

The essays helped shape debate at the New York convention, which ratified the Constitution on July 26, 1788 after a close contest. The collected Federalist Papers later became one of the most important guides to constitutional interpretation for lawyers, judges, and political leaders in the early republic.