creation and continuity of an opposition party. He deeply felt the Federalists represented aristocratic forces hostile to true republicanism and the true will of the people, as he explained in a letter to Henry Lee in 1824: Hofstadter (1970) shows it took many years for the idea to take hold that having two parties is better than having one, or none. That transition was made possible by the successful passing of power in 1801 from one party to the other. Although Jefferson systematically identified Federalist army officers and officeholders, he was blocked from removing all of them by protests from Republicans. The Quids complained he did not go far enough. Jefferson and Hamilton Well into the 20th century Jefferson was the hero for scholars, and Hamilton the villain. <Ref> Image of Jefferson</ref> Jefferson's reputation has declined sharply, primarily because of his role as a major slaveowner. Hamilton has risen; Princeton historian Sean Wilentz in 2010 identified a scholarly trend very much in Hamilton's favor—although Wilentz himself dissented and still admires Jefferson more: In recent years, Hamilton and his reputation have decidedly gained the initiative among scholars who portray him as the visionary architect of the modern liberal capitalist economy and of a dynamic federal government headed by an energetic executive. Jefferson and his allies, by contrast, have come across as naïve, dreamy idealists. At best according to many historians, the Jeffersonians were reactionary utopians who resisted the onrush of capitalist modernity in hopes of turning America into a yeoman farmers' arcadia. At worst, they were proslavery racists who wish to rid the West of Indians, expand the empire of slavery, and keep political power in local hands – all the better to expand the institution of slavery and protect slaveholders' rights to own human property." See also Federalist Era Party systems in the United States List of United States House of Representatives elections (1789–1822) American election campaigns in the 19th century History of the United States (1789–1849) References Further reading General Banning, Lance. The Jeffersonian Persuasion: Evolution of a Party Ideology (1978) online Ben-Atar, Doron and Barbara B. Oberg, eds. Federalists Reconsidered (1999), topical essays by scholars Beard, Charles A. The Economic Origins of Jeffersonian Democracy (1915) Bowling, Kenneth R. and Donald R. Kennon, eds. Perspectives on the History of Congress, 1789–1801. (2000) Brooke, John L. "The Early Republic, 1789–1815." in The Oxford Handbook of American Political History (Oxford University