Why was the storming of the Bastille both a search for weapons and a symbolic protest?

Because people wanted gunpowder and the Bastille symbolised absolute power

The Bastille was attacked on 14 July 1789 for a practical and a political reason. Parisians feared that royal troops might suppress the new revolutionary movement, so they needed weapons and especially gunpowder for defence. The fortress-prison was known to contain supplies of gunpowder. At the same time, the Bastille represented the arbitrary authority of the king because it was a royal fortress and prison associated with lettres de cachet and imprisonment without a normal public trial. Its capture therefore announced that ordinary people could challenge royal power. Option D correctly combines both meanings. Option A wrongly substitutes grain and farm tools, while B and C confuse the Bastille with other royal or representative institutions.

This is a Class 9 History question. Chapter: The French Revolution. Topic: The Outbreak of the Revolution.