How did separation of powers challenge the old absolute rule in France?

Correct answer: It placed legislative executive and judicial powers on separate bases

The direct answer is B: legislative, executive, and judicial powers were placed on separate bases. Under absolute monarchy, the king concentrated many kinds of authority in his own hands. Separation of powers challenged this arrangement by dividing government work. The legislature makes laws, the executive carries out laws, and the judiciary interprets laws and gives judgments. If these functions are separated, one person cannot easily control the whole state, and each part can limit the others. B is correct because this is the constitutional principle introduced to prevent concentration of power. A is wrong because the aim was not to give all judicial power to the king. C is wrong because the Church was not given complete military authority. D is wrong because noble tax exemptions were not the purpose of constitutional reform. The key memory line is: separate powers mean no single ruler can act as law-maker, administrator, and judge at the same time.