the members of the Federalist Party, a political party that flourished in the USA between the early 1790’s and 1816. The Federalists, who represented the interests of the wealthy commercial bourgeoisie and a segment of the slavehold-ing plantation owners, advocated the strengthening of the federal government. They held power from 1789 to 1801, during which time they introduced a protectionist tariff (1789) and created a national bank (1791).

Fears that the ideas of the French Revolution might spread to the USA led the Federalists to orient their foreign policy toward the British monarchy, with which the United States signed the humiliating Jay’s Treaty of 1794. In 1798 the Federalists passed the Alien and Sedition Acts, which curtailed democratic freedoms. As a result of this legislation and their party’s tax policy, the Federalists suffered a decline in influence and were defeated in the elections of 1800. Finding themselves in the opposition, the Federalists in 1804 organized a plot to partition the United States. During the War of 1812, they sought to separate the states of New England from the rest of the country.