| Alexander
Hamilton (1757-1804), lawyer, Revolutionary patriot, and
delegate to the Continental Congress, made these notes in
preparation for a major speech delivered on 18 June 1787
at the Constitutional Convention assembled in
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. An early and vocal critic of
the Articles of Confederation, Hamilton was firmly
aligned with the nationalist faction at the convention.
Some historians believe that Hamilton's 18 June speech
was his most important public document because it
outlined his philosophy of government. Hamilton favored a
centralized national government which placed strict
limitations on the powers of states and individuals. He
later addressed many of these same concerns in The
Federalist Papers, the much-cited collection of
essays he wrote with James Madison (1751-1836) and John
Jay (1745-1829) to explain and encourage ratification of
the Constitution, and in the public reports of the first
federal administration, during which Hamilton served as
secretary of the treasury. |
