After the Constitutional Convention, the fight for the Constitution had just begun. According to Article 7,
conventions in 9 states had to ratify the Constitution before it would become effective. Some states were
highly in favor of the new Constitution, and within three months, three states, Delaware (with a vote of 300), Pennsylvania (46-23), and New Jersey (38-0), had ratified it. Georgia (26-0) and Connecticut (12840) quickly followed in January, 1788.
More than half-way there in four months, one might think that the battle was nearly
won. But the problem was not with the states that ratified quickly, but with the key
states in which ratification was not as certain. Massachusetts, New York, and Virginia
were key states, both in terms of population and stature. Debates in Massachusetts were
very heated, with impassioned speeches from those on both sides of the issue.
Massachusetts was finally won, 187-168, but only after assurances to opponents that the
Constitution could have a bill of rights added to it.
After Massachusetts, the remaining states required for ratification did so within a few months, with
Maryland (63-11) and South Carolina (149-73) falling in line, and New Hampshire (57-47) casting the
deciding vote to reach the required nine states. New York and Virginia still remained, however, and many
doubted that the new Constitution could survive without these
states.
So what was the hold up in New York & Virginia?!?
Early in the ratification process, those who supported the
Constitution took the name "Federalists."
Federalists: Alexander Hamilton,
James Madison & John Jay
Though those who opposed the Constitution actually wanted individual states to have more power
under a federal governmental system (as the Articles provided), they were more or less forced into
taking the name "Anti-Federalists" (get it…they wanted MORE federalism, but were called Antifederalists…crazy I know!).
The Anti-Federalists had many reasons to oppose the Constitution.
1. They did not feel that a republican form of government could work
on a national scale and that the central government would become
too strong, and as such they felt that the Articles of Confederation
should simply be amended, but not abandoned
2. They also did not feel that the rights of the individual were
Anti-Federalists: Patrick Henry, George
properly or sufficiently protected by the new Constitution.
Mason & Samuel Adams
They saw themselves as the true heirs of the spirit of the
Revolution.
Some very notable persons in United States history counted themselves Anti-Federalists, like Patrick
Henry, Thomas Paine, George Mason, Sam Adams, and Luther Martin.
There were some true ideological and philosophical differences between the two camps (e.g. states rights vs. the
rights of the central government). In many instances, though, there was also a lot of personal animosity. For
example, in New York, George Clinton was a political opponent of John Jay, a prominent Federalist, and also
disliked Alexander Hamilton. And in Virginia, Patrick Henry was a political rival of James Madison.
In addition, many letters were written to newspapers under various pseudonyms, like "The Federal Farmer,"
"Cato," "Brutus," and "Cincinnatus." These letters and several speeches are now known as "The Anti-Federalist
Papers."
In response to the speeches and letters of the Anti-Federalists, the
Federalists gave their own speeches and wrote their own letters.
John Jay, Alexander Hamilton, and James Madison coordinated
their efforts and wrote a series of 85 letters under the name
"Publius." These letters both explained the new Constitution and
answered the charges of the Anti-Federalists. The letters were
collected into a volume called "The Federalist Papers." Though the
influence of the Federalist at the time is questionable, the letters are
noted today as classics in political theory. Perhaps of far greater
importance were the Federalist stances of George Washington and
Ben Franklin, very prominent men both in their day and today.
Their opinions carried great weight.
The votes in Virginia and New York were hard-won, and close. Virginia voted 89-79, and New York, a month
later, voted 30-27 to ratify. With all the major states now having ratified, confidence was high that the United
States under the Constitution would be a success, or, at least, have a fighting chance. The new Congress met, and
George Washington became the first President. As suggested by many of the ratifying conventions, one of the
first tasks tackled was the writing of a Bill of Rights to be attached to the Constitution. The Bill, Amendments 110, eased the minds of many hold-outs. Shortly thereafter, North Carolina ratified (194-77), and lone hold-out,
Rhode Island, finally relented and ratified on a close 34-32 vote.
Aftermath
The Federalists were successful in their effort to get the Constitution ratified by all 13 states. The Federalists
later established a party known as the Federalist Party. The party backed the views of Hamilton and was a strong
force in the early United States. The party, however, was short-lived, dead by 1824.
The Anti-Federalists generally gravitated toward the views of Thomas Jefferson. The Anti-Federalsts became
known as the Republican Party, later known as the Democratic Republicans, the precursor to today's Democratic
Party. Woah, what?!! Today’s Democratic Party was once the Republican Party…Dude?!?
Issue
A Constitution
establishing a
strong central
government
Federalists
Favored
Anti-Federalists
Opposed
Notes
 The Chief worry of the AntiFederalists was that the states
would lose influence with the
growth in the national
government’s power
Power of the
Thirteen States
Favored limiting state power.
Argued that the Senate (with
two representatives per state)
adequately represented state
interests.
Strong support of
power and
influence of the
states

Bill of Rights
Not necessary
Supported as
essential
Articles of
Confederation
Opposed as ineffectual as a
governing document.
Congress’ power was limited
to requesting cooperation from
states.
Articles of
Confederation need
to be amended, not
abandoned

The decision at the Annapolis
Convention (1786 before the
Constitutional Convention in
1787) to suggest a national
convention to MODIFY the
Articles should have been
heeded.
Size of the nation
A large republic was seen as
the best protection for
individual freedoms.

No experiment in democracy
on a scale of America had ever
been attempted!
Supporters
Large farmers, merchants,
artisans
Only a small
republic could
protect individual
rights
Small farmers,
often from rural
areas

Only a few wealthy men
(Mason and Randolph of
Virginia and Gerry of
Massachusetts) joined the AntiFederalists
Alexander Hamilton, John Jay,
John Adams, James Madison
(George Washington…sort of)
Patrick Henry,
George Mason,
Sam Adams, James
Monroe
Local control was key to the
Anti-Federalist concept of
democracy. This issue would
boil up in states’ rights fights
in the 1800s (slavery debate)
 The absence of a Bill of Rights
in the original Constitution was
seen as a real threat to
individual citizens’ liberties.
Using both your textbook (pages 218-221) and the reading above, please respond to the following
questions:
1.
Define the term ratify
2. What states immediately ratified the Constitution (by January, 1788)
3. Why was it essential that Massachusetts, New York, and Virginia ratify the Constitution?
4. How did the passage of the Bill of Rights help deal with Patrick Henry’s (and many of the AntiFederalists) concerns?
5. What is an amendment?
6. Summarize three arguments of the Anti-Federalists against the Constitution.
7. To try to persuade the people in their states to either support or oppose the Constitution, what did
the Federalists and Anti-federalists both do?
8. Who wrote the Federalist papers? What was their purpose?
9. What two individuals’ support of the Constitution was the most important factor in the overall
ratification of the Constitution?
10. Explain the evolution of the Anti-Federalist Party: