| Italic Title: | no |
| Federalist No. 13 | |
| Border: | yes |
| Author: | Alexander Hamilton |
| Title Orig: | Advantage of the Union in Respect to Economy in Government |
| Country: | United States |
| Language: | English |
| Series: | The Federalist |
| Publisher: | The Independent Journal |
| Pub Date: | November 28, 1787 |
| Media Type: | Newspaper |
| Preceded By: | Federalist No. 12 |
| Followed By: | Federalist No. 14 |
Federalist No. 13 is an essay by Alexander Hamilton, the thirteenth of The Federalist Papers.[1] It was first published in The Independent Journal (New York) on November 28, 1787, under the pseudonym Publius, the name under which all The Federalist papers were published.[2] It is titled "Advantage of the Union in Respect to Economy in Government".[2]
This essay focuses on the view that a Union would be more economically sound than separate States.[3] Publius explains that, rather than having many separate governments to support, a Union would require only one national government to support.[4] He describes this as being both more simple as well as more economical.[5] The essay further explains that in order to defend themselves, separate States would have to work together, but their support of one another would be disjointed.[6] Only a fully united government would provide the best defense for all the States and be able to support military establishments and necessary civil servants.[7] The paper finishes with a warning for what would happen if the states become broken up: "a separation would be not less injurious to the economy, than to the tranquility, commerce, revenue, and liberty of every part," meaning that a division would hurt many components of America's unity.