What was the Tennis Court Oath?

• A. The pledge to continue meeting until a constitution was drawn
• B. The storming of the Bastille
• C. The Reign of Terror
• D. The Declaration of the Rights of Man

Answer: (A)

The main idea here is understanding what the Tennis Court Oath was and why it mattered. The Tennis Court Oath was a pledge taken by the members of the Third Estate who had formed the National Assembly after being locked out of their usual meeting place in 1789. They gathered in an indoor tennis court and swore not to disband until they had drawn up a new constitution for France. This act publicly asserted that sovereignty lay with the nation and that a constitutional framework would limit the king’s power, marking a decisive move toward constitutional government during the Revolution. The other events are separate: the storming of the Bastille happened as a later symbolic act of rebellion, while the Reign of Terror and the Declaration of the Rights of Man are different episodes or documents related to the Revolution but do not describe this pledge to continue meeting until a constitution was established.