Which term describes the assembly of representatives from all three estates in medieval France?

• A. Parliament of Paris
• B. Estates-General
• C. Council of Clermont
• D. National Assembly

Answer: (B)

The Estates-General is the term for the assembly that brought together representatives from all three estates—clergy (First Estate), nobility (Second Estate), and commoners (Third Estate)—in medieval France. Kings called it to seek counsel and, importantly, to obtain approval for taxes. It wasn’t a standing body with ongoing legislative power like a modern parliament and met only when the crown summoned it. Because each estate often spoke as a bloc, the Third Estate could be outvoted, which reflects the social structure of the time.

This distinguishes it from the other options: Parliament of Paris was a high court rather than a representative body of the three estates; the Council of Clermont was a papal council famous for initiating the First Crusade; the National Assembly emerged during the French Revolution in 1789, representing revolutionary changes, not the medieval three-estate system.