The three estates of the Estates General consisted of which groups?

• A. Clergy, Nobles, Commoners
• B. Clergy, Knights, Merchants
• C. Kings, Queens, Nobles
• D. Clergy, Military, Peasants

Answer: (A)

In pre-revolutionary France, society was organized into three large orders for representation and privilege. The first estate was the clergy, the second estate was the nobility, and the third estate encompassed the commoners—peasants, laborers, and the urban bourgeoise. The Estates General brought together representatives from these three groups to advise the king, with each estate maintaining its own rights and privileges. This is why the trio of groups described—clergy, nobles, and commoners—fits the concept perfectly. Other groupings either mix in categories that weren’t recognized as a formal estate (like a separate military or monarchs themselves) or place individuals who were typically part of one estate into a different category, which isn’t how the Estates General was organized.