| − | The Federalist Party was the first [[political party]] in the [[United States]], formed for the purpose of ratifying the [[Constitution]]. The first two [[presidents]] ([[George Washingtond]] and [[John Adams]]) were members of the party, as well as [[Secretary of the Treasury]] [[Alexander Hamilton]], [[Chief Justice]] [[John Marshall]], as well as other influential early politicians. With the murder of their leader, Hamilton, in 1804, the party began to decline. It met its end in the rising sense of [[nationalism]] after the [[War of 1812]], as most Federalists had opposed the war. | + | The Federalist Party was the first [[political party]] in the [[United States]], formed for the purpose of ratifying the [[Constitution]]. The first two [[presidents]] ([[George Washington]] and [[John Adams]]) were members of the party, as well as [[Secretary of the Treasury]] [[Alexander Hamilton]], [[Chief Justice]] [[John Marshall]], as well as other influential early politicians. With the murder of their leader, Hamilton, in 1804, the party began to decline. It met its end in the rising sense of [[nationalism]] after the [[War of 1812]], as most Federalists had opposed the war. |
| | The Federalists advocated for a strong national government, with little to no power in the hands of the states. Their foreign policy was pro-British and anti-French, leading to conflict with the Francophile Democratic-Republicans. | | The Federalists advocated for a strong national government, with little to no power in the hands of the states. Their foreign policy was pro-British and anti-French, leading to conflict with the Francophile Democratic-Republicans. |