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[[image:alexhamilton.jpg|thumb|The Federalist Party was founded by Treasury Secretary [[Alexander Hamilton]] in 1791. After he was killed in duel in 1804, the party drifted without outstanding leaders.]]

[[image:alexhamilton.jpg|thumb|The Federalist Party was founded by Treasury Secretary [[Alexander Hamilton]] in 1791. After he was killed in 1804, the party drifted.]]

The '''Federalist Party''' was a U.S. political party founded in 1791 by Treasury Secretary [[Alexander Hamilton]]. It rallied support for the administrations of [[George Washington]] and [[John Adams]], and it promoted various policies designed to strengthen the national government. It was the world's first political party. Notable spokesmen included [[John Jay]] and author [[Noah Webster]]. Washington was never a member, but he did endorse most of its policies. The Federalists were opposed by the [[Republicans (Jeffersonian)|Republicans]], a rival party led by [[Thomas Jefferson]] and [[James Madison]]. The Federalists elected Adams president in 1796. In 1799, the party was at the peak of its power. It controlled all branches of government, including Congress, the presidency, and the courts. But Adams was defeated by Jefferson in the "Revolution of 1800." With the loss of Adams and Hamilton, who was killed in 1804, the Federalists became an antiquated, backward-looking party that merely went through the motions of contesting elections. Rufus King, nominated in 1816, was the party's last presidential candidate.

The '''Federalist Party''' was a U.S. political party founded in 1791 by Treasury Secretary [[Alexander Hamilton]]. It rallied support for the administrations of [[George Washington]] and [[John Adams]], and it promoted various policies designed to strengthen the national government. It was the world's first political party. Notable spokesmen included [[John Jay]] and author [[Noah Webster]]. Washington was never a member, but he did endorse most of its policies. The Federalists were opposed by the [[Republicans (Jeffersonian)|Republicans]], a rival party led by [[Thomas Jefferson]] and [[James Madison]]. The Federalists elected Adams president in 1796. In 1799, the party was at the peak of its power. It controlled all branches of government, including Congress, the presidency, and the courts. But Adams was defeated by Jefferson in the "Revolution of 1800." Although the margin of defeat was small, the Federalists never recovered. In 1804, Hamilton was killed in a duel. Without outstanding leaders, the party was an antiquated, backward-looking organization. All the same, it retained the loyalty of a large fraction of the population. Even the party's last presidential candidate, Rufus King, nominated in 1816, received an estimated 31 percent of the vote.

==History==

==History==