Tension grows between
​Britain and the colonists.

In the 1760s, American colonists believed Britain was reasserting its authority over them by meddling in colonial affairs, expanding its military presence and imposing new taxes.

This illustration depicts the 1765 Stamp Act riot in Boston, which was
just one example of the outrage triggered after the British Parliament levied
its first tax on internal commerce within the colonies.
(Cassell’s Illustrated History of England 1872-1878).

The 13-point statement issued by the delegates of the Stamp Act Congress
in 1765, which was convened to petition Parliament to
repeal the unpopular tax (see excerpt to right).
(Proceedings of the Congress at New York, 1766, Library of Congress).

Colonists chafe at their
​lack of representation.

Without any representation in Parliament, colonists were unable to influence British policies.  They latched onto the
​now familiar refrain of “taxation without representation,”
​turning it into a revolutionary slogan.

“...it is inseparably essential to the freedom of the people, and the undoubted right of Englishmen, that no taxes should be imposed on them but with their own consent, given personally or by their representatives.”  
​
-- Proceedings of the Congress at New York, 1766, Library of Congress

Revolution arrives, and
​with it a key question.

As the colonies fight for and ultimately win their independence, a key question looms:  How to design a government that effectively represents all citizens, and remedies the failings inherent in the British model.

Delegates at the 1787 Constitutional Convention debated the best
design for the new American government (VMFA Archives, 1856).

An advertisement for the Federalist Papers, a series of essays (authored by
Alexander Hamilton, James Madison and John Jay using the pen name “Publius”)
which promoted ratification of the U.S. Constitution.
(Constitution Facts, 1787).

Inspiration is found in the cradle of representative democracy.

The Founding Fathers admired the design and longevity of the Roman Republic, the Western World’s first representative democracy.  They used that model to create a system where all citizens had a voice in their government and a genuine opportunity to influence matters of interest to them.

“Hamilton, Madison, and Jay did not sign their names to the Federalist Papers. Instead, they wrote all of them under the pseudonym ‘PUBLIUS.’  They chose the name Publius because it was the first name of Publius Valerius Publicola, an important supporter of the Roman Republic.  They apparently saw themselves as analogous proponents of the proposed new federal republic."  
​
​-- Gregory Maggs, Professor of Law, George Washington University Law School

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