Who wrote The Federalist Papers?

• A. George Washington
• B. Alexander Hamilton, John Jay, James Madison
• C. Benjamin Franklin
• D. Thomas Jefferson

Answer: (B)

The main idea is recognizing who wrote The Federalist Papers and why they were written. These essays were a collaborative defense of the proposed U.S. Constitution, published in 1787–1788 to persuade states to ratify it. They were written by Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, and John Jay under the collective pen name Publius. Hamilton authored many of the essays and argued powerfully for a strong central government with an energetic executive. Madison contributed extensively on the dangers of factions and on the constitutional structures that protect liberty, such as checks and balances and the separation of powers. Jay, while writing fewer pieces, supported the arguments for unity and the necessity of a constitutional framework.

The other founding figures you might hear about—George Washington, Benjamin Franklin, and Thomas Jefferson—were influential in this era and supported the move toward a new framework, but they did not author these essays. The Federalist Papers are best understood as a joint effort by Hamilton, Madison, and Jay to explain and defend the Constitution to the American public, especially to sway critical ratification debates in New York.