The third estate in French history, directly related to the Estates-General, was anyone who did not belong in the first two estates. Typically this meant the lay commonality. This would not include clergy, tenants of the church, or nobility, either by the sword or by the robe.
The Third Estate
increasing dissatisfaction of the third estate
National Assembly
97% of the French population belonged to the third estate.
1st estate: clergy 2nd estate: nobles 3rd estate:middle class
The Third Estate
June 17, 1789
Yes, the National Assembly (Assemblée nationale) was created on 17 June 1789 and the storming of the Bastille occured on 14 July 1789.
On June 20, 1789, the deputies of the Third Estate of France declared themselves the National Assembly, asserting their independence from the Estates-General. They took the Tennis Court Oath, pledging not to disband until they had given France a new constitution. This event marked the beginning of the French Revolution.
Members of the Third Estate declared themselves to be the National Assembly in June 1789, asserting that they represented the true voice of the French people. They believed they had the authority to make decisions on behalf of the nation, challenging the traditional privileges of the First and Second Estates. This declaration was a pivotal moment in the lead-up to the French Revolution, as it marked a shift towards popular sovereignty and democratic principles.
The Third Estate.
Written by Emmanuel Joseph Sieyes as a political pamphlet in 1789. The Third Estate were the common people of France and were a nation within themselves. As such, they had no need of the First and Second Estates, the Clergy and the Aristocracy
those in the third estate represented the commoners and those that did not belong in the first and second class
The members of the Third Estate were arguing about the process for the Estates-General. The king's ministers had intended that the three estates meet and vote separately, with each estate having one vote. Instead, the Third Estate insisted that the three estates meet as one body, and that voting be by head so that each person have one vote (the Third Estate had as many members as the other two estates combined). When the deadlock over procedure could not be resolved, the members of the Third Estate declared themselves to be the only legitimate representative body, and renamed themselves the "National Assembly". They then vowed never to disband until they had written a constitution for France. They did this on 20 June 1789. The Third Estate invited the members of the other two estates to join them as part of the National Assembly, which they eventually did.
17 June 1789
increasing dissatisfaction of the third estate
increasing dissatisfaction of the third estate