Korva is a scroll of the internet’s best ideas.
Federal once meant a loose alliance
Both words come from the Latin foedus, meaning a league, truce, pact, or alliance. When the convention's first resolution declared that a union of states merely federal was not enough, it was rejecting the loose-alliance model. Advocates of a strong national government were nationalists at that point, even though many of the same men would soon be called Federalists.
The Virginia Plan was only the launching pad, but it proposed ending state sovereignty. What came out of the convention was different from either extreme. James Madison later described it in Federalist 39 as a hybrid of national government and confederacy.
That hybrid became the new meaning of federalism, or more specifically of American federalism.
Why did Federalists claim that name?
Supporters of the Constitution took the name Federalists early in the ratification debate. Since federal still meant a loose league to most people, the label implied they stood for the familiar system. Their opponents were left with Anti-Federalist, a name defined by what they opposed. Many of those opponents actually favored a looser confederation.
What did Federalist 39 say about the hybrid?
Madison described the Constitution as partly national and partly federal. The House of Representatives was chosen by the people, which made it national. The Senate was chosen by state legislatures, which made it federal. Ratification by state conventions was federal, but the scope of the government's powers was national.
Do other countries use the same word?
Switzerland is formally called the Swiss Confederation, though it operates as a federal state with a strong central government. Germany, Canada, and Australia also use federal systems. Their structures differ, but all split power between a central government and regional ones. Switzerland adopted its federal constitution in 1848.
More from History That Doesn't Suck
