The Outbreak of the Revolution

The Estates General met on 5 May 1789. On 20 June 1789, the representatives took the Tennis Court Oath, pledging not to separate until a constitution was drafted. This was followed by the storming of the Bastille on 14 July 1789. Therefore, option B gives the correct order. Option C is incorrect because it places the Tennis Court Oath before the meeting of the Estates General. Exam tip: remember the sequence 5 May, 20 June, and 14 July.

The correct answer is A because the people of Paris feared that King Louis XVI might use the troops gathered around the city to suppress the growing revolutionary movement. The presence of soldiers created a serious sense of insecurity, especially when people were already angry about high bread prices and political uncertainty. Therefore, they searched for guns and ammunition so that they could defend themselves and resist possible royal repression. The search for weapons was not connected with trade, Church protection, or foreign travel. It showed that the conflict had become a direct confrontation between ordinary citizens and royal authority.

The National Assembly showed that representatives wanted a role in constitution and rule. Treat it as a political turning point.

Peasant revolts and attacks on feudal records created pressure. In exams link it with rural discontent.

The king called the Estates-General to approve new taxes. Exam tip: remember financial crisis and the assembly together.

The Estates-General met at Versailles on 5 May 1789. King Louis XVI called it to address France's financial crisis and taxation issues. Paris became a major centre of revolutionary activity, but it was not the venue of the Estates-General meeting. Exam tip: associate the Estates-General of 1789 with Versailles.

The Estates-General meeting began on 5 May 1789. Exam tip: remember the date and event as a pair.

The correct answer is D. By 1789, France was facing a severe financial crisis caused by costly wars, including support for the American War of Independence, and by the large expenses of the royal court. The government needed additional revenue, but important taxes required the consent of the Estates-General, an assembly representing the three estates. Louis XVI therefore called this body to approve proposals for new taxes. The meeting was not originally called to choose a king, arrange a marriage, or establish a republic. Those alternatives confuse the immediate financial purpose with later revolutionary developments.

In the Estates-General, the First Estate represented the clergy, including church officials. The nobility formed the Second Estate, while peasants, merchants and other commoners belonged to the Third Estate. Exam tip: remember the order of the three Estates—clergy, nobility and Third Estate.

The Estates-General was divided into three estates, or legally recognised social orders. The First Estate represented the clergy, the Second Estate represented the nobility, and the Third Estate included the common people. Thus, the correct choice is B, nobility. This arrangement reflected the unequal structure of French society before the Revolution, because the first two estates enjoyed important privileges while the Third Estate carried most direct taxation. Peasants, workers, and many urban people belonged broadly to the Third Estate, not the Second.

The word “Second” refers to the order of the estate, not to a separate economic group such as merchants or trade guilds. Nobles owned land, held special rights, and often occupied important military or administrative positions. Their representation in the Estates-General was therefore based on social rank and privilege. A useful memory link is: First Estate—clergy, Second Estate—nobility, Third Estate—commoners. This classification makes option B the only appropriate answer.

The Third Estate consisted of the common people who did not enjoy the privileges of the clergy and nobility. It included peasants, workers, artisans, merchants and the bourgeoisie, or middle class, so option C is correct. High clergy belonged to the First Estate, while the king belonged to the royal family. Exam tip: remember: First Estate—clergy; Second Estate—nobility; Third Estate—common people.

Under the old system each estate had one vote. Exam tip: write voting method as a cause of dispute.

The correct answer is A. Traditionally, the Estates-General voted by estate, giving one collective vote to the clergy, one to the nobility, and one to the Third Estate. Since the first two privileged estates could combine against the Third Estate, this system could defeat the wishes of the majority of representatives. The Third Estate therefore demanded voting by individual member, often expressed as one person, one vote. Such an arrangement would make representation more equal and reflect the much larger population represented by the Third Estate. The demand was not based on families, exclusive clerical voting, or a final royal vote.

The Third Estate declared itself the National Assembly. Exam tip: treat it as a political turning point.

The correct answer is D. On 20 June 1789, deputies of the Third Estate found that their usual meeting hall had been closed. They assembled in an indoor tennis court and took an oath not to separate until they had prepared a constitution for France. This act challenged the king's authority and showed that the representatives considered themselves a National Assembly with a political mission. The oath was therefore linked to constitutional government and the determination to continue their work. It was not a plan to rebuild the Bastille, crown the king, or increase a Church tax.

The correct answer is A: 20 June 1789. On that day, deputies of the Third Estate gathered in a tennis court after they were prevented from entering their normal meeting hall. They pledged that they would not disperse until France had a constitution. The date is important because it falls before the fall of the Bastille on 14 July and marks the growing challenge to absolute monarchy. 4 August 1789 is associated with the abolition of many feudal privileges, while 26 August is associated with the Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen. 21 January 1793 was the execution of Louis XVI, much later.

Mirabeau played an important role for the Third Estate. Exam tip: remember the leader and the side.

Abbe Sieyes highlighted the importance of the Third Estate. Exam tip: remember the pamphlet and the Third Estate together.

The Bastille was a fortress prison in Paris, where people could be imprisoned on the king's orders. It therefore became a symbol of absolute royal power. It was not a school, market, or church. Exam tip: the storming of the Bastille on 14 July 1789 was a major event of the French Revolution.

People hoped to find arms and gunpowder in the Bastille. Exam tip: remember the immediate cause of the attack.