similar to what the colonists experienced under the rule of Parliament. The Anti-Federalists viewed a weak national government as the best safeguard of the people's liberties. They believed in stronger state governments. Since a national army could be used to enforce the will of the national government, Anti-Federalist viewed state militias as the best defense for the young country. The Anti-Federalists were also for limited interpretations of the Constitution as well as leaving banking as a state and local enterprise.

The Federalist debates were centered around the ratification of the US Constitution. The Federalists were the supporters and advocates of the Constitution, while the Anti-Federalists argued against it. The Federalists believed that the Articles of Confederation were insufficient for guaranteeing the continued survival of the United States and that the realities of governing necessitated an increase in federal power. The Anti-Federalists, on the other hand, believed that the Constitution itself had gone too far in favoring federal power and represented a threat to liberty.

Both the Federalists and Anti-Federalists harbored concerns about the future of the United States. Furthermore, both sides in this debate made use of argumentation and discourse in order to mobilize opinion in their favor. Finally, both the Federalists and Anti-Federalists had an impact in shaping American democracy. The Federalists were successful in seeing the Constitution ratified. On the other hand, the criticisms and concerns raised by the Anti-Federalists were critical in shaping the Bill of Rights.

The creation of the US Constitution in Philadelphia in 1787 was controversial because the Founding Fathers exceeded their authority by scrapping the old Articles of Confederation. They had concluded that the Articles of Confederation were too flawed, so they they replaced it entirely. After completing their work, the Founding Fathers sent it to the states for ratification: nine of the thirteen states had to ratify the Constitution for it to become valid.

Federalists and Anti-Federalists factions emerged, and they engaged in a fierce debate over the Constitution. The Federalists urged the states to ratify the document and the Anti-Federalists were opposed to it. Newspapers reported on the controversy, and they were read by Americans everywhere. Leading Federalists published The Federalist to convince skeptics. The Federalist was a series of 85 essays written by Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, and John Jay. They successfully argued that the strong new government would not trample on the people's rights. Finally, the anti-Federalists agreed after the "Bill of Rights" was added to the Constitution.

After the ninth state, New Hampshire, ratified the Constitution, it went into effect in 1788.

The Federalists and the Anti-federalists were the first major political parties in the United States. The Anti-federalists were known as the Democratic-Republican Party. Both of these groups were political parties in the early days of our country under the Constitution. Both were supportive of our new country. They had different visions of how the country should operate.

The Federalists believed in having a strong federal government. They believed one of the weaknesses of the Articles of Confederation was that the federal government lacked power. The Federalists believed in a loose interpretation of the Constitution. A loose interpretation would allow the federal government to do many things not specifically listed in the Constitution. The Federalists supported Hamilton’s debt plan and the development of a national bank. Many business people supported this party, especially in the Northeast. The Federalists also want friendlier relations with Great Britain. John Adams and Alexander Hamilton were Federalists.

The Anti-federalists or the Democratic-Republicans wanted the power of the federal government to be limited. They believed state governments should have more power. They were big believers in a strict interpretation of the Constitution. This would limit the power of the federal government. They were not in favor of the national bank since the Constitution didn’t mention that idea. They also wanted low taxes. The support for this party was mainly in the South, especially among farmers who weren’t plantation owners. These people wanted a friendlier relationship with France. Thomas Jefferson and James Madison were members of this party.

The Federalists and the anti-Federalists were formed in the debates surrounding ratification of the United States Constitution. When contrasted against the earlier Articles of Confederation, the Constitution represented a dramatic expansion of power for the Federal Government. Worried by this observation, the anti-Federalists sought to build support against the Constitution, whereas the Federalists wished to ensure its success.

The anti-Federalists were in favor of the political system envisioned by the Articles of Confederation, which envisioned a very weak Federal Government with power primarily situated with the various states. They were nervous about the office of the president, and the potential risks involved with situating so much power with just one person. They opposed the power of the Federal Government to collect taxes. Their most influential criticism, however, centered around the fact that the Constitution (as originally written) did not ensure for a Bill of Rights. In this way, the Federalist Debates were critical in shaping the first ten amendments.

The Federalists rallied to defend the Constitution against these charges. For one thing, they argued that, by ensuring that power remained divided between the different branches of government (and also between the levels of federal and state government), these divisions actually would serve as a check against tyranny. Furthermore, they felt that the system of government as envisioned by the Articles of Confederation had already proven itself inadequate to solve the challenges facing an independent United States. On those grounds, the changes envisioned in the US Constitution were viewed as necessary ones if the country was to survive as a functioning polity.

Ultimately, the Federalists won this debate, as ratification was achieved.

During the state conventions that considered whether to adopt the Constitution that had been written in the Philadelphia Convention, Federalists were for the adoption of the Constitution while Anti-federalists were some of them against adopting it and other for adopting it only if it was first amended.

Federalists wanted a strong central government that would rule the people of the United States directly and not through the state governments.  Anti-federalists wanted a weak central government that would serve the governments of the states by performing those functions of government that could be better preformed by one authority than by 13 different authorities, such as defense and diplomacy.  Other functions of government would be performed by the states, not by the federal government.

Federalist were for a system of strong federal courts while Anti-federalists were for limits on the federal courts.  For example, Anti-federalists were opposed to the U.S. Supreme Court having original jurisdiction to hear suits between a state and a citizen of another state.  The suit would be about the laws of the state involved, so it should be heard by the courts of that state.  This power and other powers given to the U.S. courts would result in the destruction of both the judicial function and the legislative function of the state governments.  Federalists were for this original jurisdiction and for the U.S. courts having the power of review and veto over the enactments of the state legislatures and the decisions of the state courts.

The Federalists were for the federal government having the power to raise taxes directly from the people.  They said that without this power, the U.S. could not have an effective defense nor an effective diplomacy, nor could it repay foreign debts contracted by the government.  The Anti-federalists opposed this and were for the federal government getting its money from the state governments.  They said that without this check on the federal government, it would become tyrannical over the people and the states.

The Anti-federalists were against the federal government having the power to federalize the state militias.  The Federalists were for this power.

The Federalists wanted one commercial policy for the whole country; the Anti-federalists wanted more flexibility in commercial policies to fit the needs of people in different parts of the country.  The Anti-federalists thought that powerful commercial interests would use the government to subject some regions of the country to the commercial servitude of other regions, if the government were given this power.  George Mason, a plantation master and Anti-federalist thought that any commercial laws passed by the U.S. Congress should have the approval of 3/4 of those present and voting.  He had helped draft the U.S. Constitution in the Philadelphia Convention, but he refused to sign it because it did not make this provision.

There were other differences.

http://www.libertyfund.org/details.aspx?id=2125

Anti-federalists-The anti-federalists were mostly farmers and workers. They were also opposed to a strong national government. They believed the original US Constitution made the national government too strong and took too much control over the individual states. They thought the national government should have minimal control. Patrick Henry was a famous anti-federalist.

Federalists-The federalists were prominent businessmen. They tended to consist of wealthier plantation owners and merchants. They were also instrumental in the development of the first US Constitution. They believed in a strong national government. John Adams was a famous federalist.