A reader's companion
New here?
Where to Start with the Federalist Papers
Eighty-five essays is a lot. Here is how to read them without feeling like homework, and where to go first.
The Federalist Papers were written to be read one at a time, in the newspaper, by people who had never seen the Constitution before. You can read them the same way: one argument, one sitting, no syllabus.
A few tips for reading here: the essays keep their original wording, so give yourself room to go slowly. Use the clean Reader view if the newspaper column tires your eyes, and let the short companion notes on each page carry you through the harder passages. There is no account and no rush — your progress is remembered in this browser, one paper at a time.
The simplest way in is to begin at the beginning and let Publius make his case in order. If you would rather sample first, the companions below gather the essays everyone cites and follow the questions the series keeps returning to — faction, the division of power, the presidency, the courts.
The companions
Five short guides, by essentials and by theme.
The Most Important Federalist Papers
Scholars argue over the ranking, but a few essays turn up on nearly every list. Here they are.
The Federalist Papers on Faction
The founders' word for what we would call parties and special interests, and their surprising plan to live with it.
The Federalist Papers on Separation of Powers
Montesquieu, "parchment barriers," and ambition set against ambition.
The Federalist Papers on the Presidency
Electing a president, and why the office was built for energy without monarchy.
The Federalist Papers on the Judiciary
The "least dangerous" branch, and why it was built to stand apart.