Introduced by Publius the Cat, with notes from Hamilton, Madison, and Jay
In 1787, three men wrote eighty-five essays to convince a nation to ratify its own Constitution. Now all eighty-five return with new forewords by the Spirits, guided by Publius the Cat. At 274,000 words, it is not light reading. It was never meant to be. Not sure where you stand? Take the Where Do You Stand quiz and find out which Federalist (or Anti-Federalist) you really are.
More from Publius the Cat
I am Publius. You may have heard of me. In 1787, three men borrowed my name to write eighty-five essays defending the Constitution they had just finished building. The pen name was Hamilton’s idea. The workload was Hamilton’s obsession. The arguments were, depending on whom you ask, either the foundation of American governance or the most ambitious sales pitch in the history of political thought. I have opinions about all eighty-five papers. You are welcome.
The original Publius was a collective fiction: Hamilton wrote fifty-one, Madison wrote twenty-six, Jay wrote five before illness intervened, and three were collaborative efforts about which Hamilton and Madison argued for the rest of their lives and, I can assure you, well beyond. I inherited the name, the responsibilities, and the arguments. I have added fur, a tail, and a superior attention span.
Each paper now carries a new foreword in two parts. In the first, I introduce the paper and provide the context a modern reader needs to understand what was at stake and why it still matters. In the second, the Spirit of the original author steps forward: Hamilton with characteristic confidence, Madison with characteristic precision, Jay with characteristic brevity. They explain what they meant, what they got wrong, and what keeps them up at night.
At roughly 274,000 words, this is not light reading. The Federalist Papers were never meant to be light reading. They were written to win an argument about whether a nation could govern itself without a king. That argument is not settled. It may never be. But the case these men made remains the sharpest weapon in the arsenal of self-governance, and it has never been more urgently needed.
If you are not sure where you stand on the arguments that divided the founders, try our Where Do You Stand quiz. It will place you on the spectrum from Federalist to Anti-Federalist, and I promise you the results will be more interesting than you expect. The founders disagreed about nearly everything. You may be surprised to discover which ones you agree with.
Available as a free PDF download on this site. Print edition coming soon to Franklin’s Print Shop.
Publius the Cat Constitutional Correspondent, 76 Spirits
Hamilton: I wrote fifty-one of those papers in six months while serving as a delegate, practicing law, and raising a family. I would have written more had a certain cat not continually knocked the inkwell to the floor. Madison wrote twenty-six. I trust the reader can do the arithmetic. // A. Hamilton
Madison: Quality, Alexander. Not quantity. // J. Madison
Jay: I wrote five. They were excellent. I was ill. Good day. // J. Jay
