The Anti-Federalists: Selected Writings and Speeches (Conservative Leadership Series)

"This Government...will destroy the State Governments, and swallow the liberties of the people." - Patrick Henry This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0895262606
• ISBN13: 9780895262608
• Release Date: March 2001
• Publisher: Gateway Books
• Length: 773 Pages
• Weight: 2.95 lbs.
• Dimensions: 9.8" x 1.8" x 6.3"

Customer Reviews

An Excellent Work

I read the Federalist Papers before I read this book and was convinced that the Constitution was a wonderful document. Then I heard the other side. It turns out that the Anti-Federalists were right...in most cases. The book greatly added to my understanding of the Constitution and the change that occurred in our government when we left the Articles of Confederation behind. I was left wondering whether we should have simply modified the Articles rather than embracing a consolidated government. I only wish the Anti-Federalists had won the debate about taxation. It was foolish to give the federal government the power of unlimited taxation.

The best collection of AF writings currently available

I only wanted to add a few points to the other reviewers. If you are looking at this page you probably know who the Anti-Federalists (AF) were and what part they played in our history. If not, I suggest you look at Saul Cornell's fine book, The Other Founders or Herbert Storing's, What the Anti-Federalists Were For. My main point is this: as a resource for primary source material by AF writers this collection of Frohnen's is without peer. As Mr. Kelley points out, one of the great strengths of this volume is that it includes the complete writings and, in some cases, is more complete then Storing's collection since some additional writings have been discovered since Storing was published. One small correction to Mr. Kelley's review. As he mentions there is a brief synopsis at the beginning of each essay or letter. The Essays of Brutus number sixteen so there are sixteen such synopsis. Each one of these refers the reader to the relevant essays in The Federalist where the same issues are addressed. This is especially useful for Brutus in that Brutus and Publius were consciously writing in response to each other. And I would like to affirm Mr. Vick's suggestion by saying that an evening spent in the company of Brutus and Publius is an education in itself. I have only one complaint about this book and about most of the writings I have read in regards to the AF writers and the Ratification debate. The forward by Sobran, Mr. Kelley's review below and, in some cases, the introduction by Frohnen present the AF writers as if they spoke with one voice on issues like representation and judicial review. They did not. You might as well make the claim that there is one voice for conservatism in this country at the present time. Cornell's volume is essential to understanding the various splits and factions within the AF blogosphere. Frohnen has a tendency to gloss over some of these divisions. On p. xxx, Frohnen claims that several AF writers became supporters of the Constitution once a Bill of Rights was promised. He then goes on to discuss the by now cliched point that originally the Bill of Rights was intended to only apply to the Federal government. True enough but what he doesn't mention was that within AF ranks there was much dissension as to what should be in the Bill of Rights. Luther Martin railed at the Constitution for not requiring a religious test for public office (see Cornell, p. 57). Writers like Martin disapproved of the First Amendment applying to the Federal government. Frohnen claims on p. xxvii, that AF had a fear of political elites of any kind but that simply isn't true for all of them. Richard Henry Lee very much believed in a natural elite guiding the masses. He simply felt that local elites working within a smaller governmental jurisdiction would 1. do a better job of ascertaining the common good and 2. the locals would be able to be more vigilant in watching and evaluating how well the elite were doing. These are important distinction

An American Historical 'Must Read'

"This government [Federal Government] will destroy the state governments, and swallow the liberties of the people." This was the declaration of Patrick Henry, found in these pages, along with many other intriguing and wonderful speeches. This text is a definite 'must read' in American History writings. This volume is a collection of speeches, letters, essays, articles, and addresses presented during the era of American Constitutional history. Debate over the ratification of the constitution was obviously a huge debate in historical political philosophy and this volume is a great testimony of that fact. It seems that the Federalist papers have received more attention in the classroom and in table talk conversations due to men like Hamilton, Madison, and Jay, and their respective writings. But we should not neglect a well rounded reading of political history and skip over the writings of the Anti-Federalists (Henry, Cato, DeWitt, and Brutus. In fact, I have the Federalists Papers in a collection as well as this volume and the two make for a wonderful evening of reading.Were it not for the Anti-Federalists we would not have the Bill of Rights, and thus their opposition should be seen in history as a necessary cause if for no other reason than their concern that the State governments and rights should have some protection against federal incursion. Here is a volume of collected writings which demonstrates why, in my estimation anyway, the United States had such a well rounded and firmly established form of government and political history. These pages demonstrate an America were freedom of speech and opinion rise to wonderful occasions. If you love American history, more specifically historical American political history, then you should not be without this text and these writings.