What was the National Assembly’s goal after leaving Estates-General?

When the National Assembly broke off from the Estates-General, what was the assembly’s intent?

A. To achieve genuine government reform
B. To start a revolution
C. To demand the separation of church and state
D. To create a constitutional monarchy

Answer: A. To achieve genuine government reform

When the National Assembly separated itself from the Estates-General in 1789, its primary purpose was to achieve genuine political and social change in France. The Third Estate, which represented the common people, thought that the current method of voting in the Estates-General was unfair because both the clergy and nobles voted against them every time, even though the clergy and nobles together accounted for a much smaller part of the population. As a result, they assembled and declared themselves to be the National Assembly, professing to speak for the entire French nation's wishes. Their aim, however, was not to initiate a revolution nor turn against the monarchy but to advocate for representative justice, equitable taxation, and a new constitution for a limitation of royal authority. It was the start of France's shift from being an absolute monarchy to a more democratic form of government, and it paved the way for significant alterations during the French Revolution.