Charles Austin Beard

An Economic Interpretation of the Constitution of the United States Charles Austin Beard

An Economic Interpretation of the Constitution of the United States, written by Charles Austin Beard, and published in 1913 argues that the structure of the Constitution of the United States was motivated primarily by the personal financial interests of the Founding Fathers; Beard contends that the authors of The Federalist Papers represented an interest group themselves. More specifically, Beard contends that the Constitutional Convention was attended by, and the Constitution was therefore written by, a "cohesive" elite seeking to protect its personal property (especially federal bonds) and economic standing.