What was the Tennis Court Oath and why did it matter?

• A. The Third Estate pledged to disband after a vote in the Estates-General.
• B. The King promised reforms after a public oath in the Hall of Mirrors.
• C. The Third Estate pledged not to disband until they had a constitution.
• D. The National Assembly declared war on Austria.

Answer: (C)

The main idea here is the Third Estate asserting its own political power by vowing not to disband until a constitution was in place. In June 1789, after being locked out of the Estates-General, members of the Third Estate gathered in a nearby tennis court at Versailles and took an oath to remain united until they had drawn up a constitution for France. This act showed that sovereignty lay with the people and their representatives, not with the old privileged orders, and it moved the revolution toward a constitutional framework.

That’s why this option is the best fit: it accurately describes the oath as a pledge to stay together until a constitution existed. The other statements don’t match the event—there was no pledge to disband after a vote, it wasn’t given by the king in the Hall of Mirrors, and it wasn’t about declaring war on Austria.