Tench Coxe was a significant figure in early American history who played a crucial role during the time when the United States was trying to decide whether to adopt the Constitution. The Constitution, as you might know, is the document that lays out the basic rules and principles of how the government of the United States should work.
When the Constitution was first introduced in 1787, not everyone agreed with it. Many people were worried about how much power it gave to the central, or federal, government. These debates about whether to approve the Constitution were called the "ratification debates."
During these debates, Coxe was one of the most active and vocal supporters of the Constitution. He wrote many essays (similar to opinion pieces you might see in a newspaper today) to convince people that the Constitution was a good idea. These essays were published all across the country and were widely read by people who were trying to make up their minds about whether the new system of government would work.
You might think of Coxe as an early “influencer” – someone who shaped public opinion in a big way. His essays were even more influential at the time than the famous Federalist Papers, which were written by other well-known figures like Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, and John Jay. Today, we remember the Federalist Papers much more, but in Coxe’s time, his writings were hugely influential in convincing people that the Constitution was a solid plan.
One of the things Coxe is most remembered for is his strong belief that every American had a natural right to own weapons, or "bear arms." He argued that this wasn’t just something the government gave to the people—it was an inherent, or natural, right, meaning it belonged to them simply because they were human beings living in a free society.
He emphasized that the ability to have weapons wasn’t just about hunting or self-defense. It was about ensuring that people could protect their freedom. In Coxe’s view, if a government ever became too powerful and tried to take away people’s rights, having access to weapons was a way for the people to defend themselves and their liberties. This idea later became an important part of the Second Amendment to the Constitution, which protects the right to keep and bear arms.
One of the biggest concerns people had about the new Constitution was that it might create a government that was too powerful, taking away freedom from individual states and citizens. The people who worried about this were called the “Anti-Federalists.” They thought that if too much power was given to a central government, it would eventually lead to a situation where the states and the people would have very little control over their own lives.
Coxe’s job was to convince people that the Constitution wouldn’t lead to this centralization, or concentration, of power. He argued that the Constitution was carefully designed to prevent the federal government from becoming too powerful. He explained that the Constitution only gave the federal government certain, clearly defined powers, while all other powers would be left to the individual states. In other words, the states would still have a lot of independence and control over their own affairs.
To back up his point, Coxe wrote detailed lists of the specific powers that the federal government would have and compared them with the powers that the states would keep. He used these lists to show that the federal government wouldn’t be able to take over everything—it would be limited in what it could do.
Now, let’s talk about "originalism." Originalism is a way of understanding and interpreting the Constitution by looking at what the people who wrote and approved it actually meant at the time. Imagine you’re reading a set of instructions left by someone many years ago. Instead of guessing what they might have meant based on modern ideas, you try to figure out exactly what they intended back then.
Originalism is about understanding the Constitution in the way that the people who wrote and agreed to it in the 1780s understood it. This means you try to find out what they thought each word and clause (a specific section of a legal document) meant. The reason originalism is important is that words and their meanings can change over time. For example, the word "gay" used to mean "happy" or "joyful," but today it often refers to a person’s sexual orientation. So, if we want to understand what the Constitution originally meant, we have to go back to the time when it was written and understand it through that lens.
Two of the Founding Fathers, Thomas Jefferson and James Madison, explained this concept very well. Jefferson said that whenever we try to understand what the Constitution means, we should "carry ourselves back to the time when the Constitution was adopted" and think about what people meant during the debates when it was first agreed upon. Madison echoed this idea, saying that the Constitution should only be interpreted in the way it was originally accepted by the people.
To figure out how people understood the Constitution when it was written, historians and legal experts look at various sources. These include:
These were the discussions and arguments that took place in different states when they were deciding whether to approve the Constitution. These debates give us insights into what people thought the document meant at the time.
During the ratification period, many people wrote essays, newspaper articles, and pamphlets arguing for or against the Constitution. These writings, including Coxe’s essays, are valuable resources because they show how different people interpreted the Constitution’s words and ideas.
By looking at dictionaries and legal books from the 18th century, we can understand what specific words and terms meant back then, which helps us interpret the Constitution accurately.
The Founding Fathers were heavily influenced by thinkers like John Locke, Montesquieu, and others. By studying these philosophers’ works, we can gain insight into the ideas that shaped the Constitution.
Understanding the original meaning of the Constitution helps us make sure that our government stays true to what the Founding Fathers intended. If we don’t understand or respect that original meaning, we risk letting the government gain more power than it was ever supposed to have. James Iredell, another important figure from that era, warned that the only way to stop the government from taking too much power was for the people to prevent it.
When we understand how the Constitution was meant to work, we are better equipped to recognize when the government might be overstepping its boundaries. Tench Coxe’s writings are a valuable resource in this regard because they help us understand how the people who approved the Constitution originally thought about the power of the federal government, the rights of individuals, and the balance of power between the states and the central government.
Tench Coxe was a key player in convincing people to support the Constitution. He argued that the government created by the Constitution wouldn’t be too powerful because it was designed with clear limits on what it could do. He also believed strongly in the right to bear arms, not just for hunting or personal protection, but as a way for people to protect their freedoms against any government that might try to take them away.
The concept of "originalism" helps us stay true to the Constitution by understanding what it originally meant. This involves looking at historical debates, essays, dictionaries, and the works of political philosophers to see how people in the 18th century understood the document.
By studying the writings of people like Tench Coxe, we gain a clearer picture of the Constitution’s original intent, helping us protect our freedoms and keep our government in check, just as the Founding Fathers intended.
Archival publication: original document last modified 2024-09-30. This historical essay presents an originalist interpretation and evaluative claims about influence, not a statement of current law or current product status. Featured artwork is an AI-generated conceptual illustration.
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