The Federalist Papers

The Federalist Papers are a series of 85 articles advocating the ratification of the United States Constitution. Most of the of the essays were published serially in several newspapers between October 1787 and August 1788. The Federalist Papers serve as a primary source for interpretation of the Constitution, as they outline the philosophy and motivation of the proposed system of government. The authors of the Federalist Papers wanted to both influence the vote in favor of ratification and shape future interpretations of the Constitution.