Federalist Party was one of the first political organizations in the United States. The Federalists controlled the nation’s government from 1789 to 1801. They favored a strong central government, a large peacetime army and navy, and a stable financial system.
After George Washington became president in 1789, a political division appeared between those who favored a strong federal government and those who opposed it. The Federalist Party developed under the leadership of Alexander Hamilton, Washington’s secretary of the treasury. Hamilton believed that the Constitution should be loosely interpreted to build up federal power. He favored the interests of commerce and manufacturing over agriculture. Hamilton also wanted the new government to be on a sound financial basis. He proposed tax increases and the establishment of a national bank.
Thomas Jefferson and James Madison opposed Hamilton. Their followers became known as Democratic-Republicans. They believed that the Constitution should be strictly interpreted, and that the states and the citizens should retain as many of their powers and rights as possible. John Adams, a Federalist, succeeded Washington as president in 1797. The Federalists lost control of the national government when Jefferson became president in 1801. Their party ceased to exist as a national organization after the election of 1816. However, it remained influential in a number of states until it disappeared completely during the 1820’s.
The term Federalists also refers to the group of people who fought for the adoption of the Constitution in 1787 and 1788. This group was a loose alliance, not an organized political party.
See also Political party (Development of parties in the United States); Adams, John (Vice president) (Adams’s administration (1797-1801)); Anti-Federalists; Democratic-Republican Party; Hamilton, Alexander.
