EstatesGeneral

The Estates-General, or Etats Généraux, was a historic assembly in medieval and early modern France that brought together representatives from the three traditional orders of society: the First Estate (the clergy), the Second Estate (the nobility), and the Third Estate (agents of the commoners). It was not a permanent legislative body; rather, it was convened by the king as needed and served primarily as an advisory council to offer consent on taxes and royal policies.

The institution appeared irregularly over several centuries. The earliest well-documented meetings occurred in the 13th and 14th centuries, with one of the best known early summons in 1302 under King Philip IV. Across its existence, the Estates-General varied in power and frequency, often reflecting the king’s prerogative and the political context. In many periods the three estates met separately and each estate had a single vote, which gave the Third Estate a limited ability to block measures unless a broader constitutional arrangement was adopted.

A turning point occurred in 1789, when the Estates-General was convened at Versailles after a long hiatus since 1614. Facing a severe financial crisis and social tensions, the Third Estate demanded constitutional reforms and greater representation. It ultimately proclaimed itself the National Assembly, signaling the collapse of the Ancien Régime’s old order and contributing to the onset of the French Revolution. After this transformation, the Estates-General ceased to function as a separate legislative body, though its legacy influenced concepts of constitutional representation and citizen rights.

Today, the Estates-General is studied as an important historical example of pre-revolutionary representation and the evolution of modern parliamentary institutions.