Institution

Estates General (France)

1302–1789 · 14th century · Also known as Estates-General of France

The Estates General was the assembly of the three orders of the Kingdom of France, clergy, nobility and commoners, first summoned by Philip IV in 1302. It met irregularly to grant taxes or advise the crown and was not called between 1614 and 1789. Its meeting in May 1789 led to the Third Estate proclaiming itself the National Assembly, beginning the French Revolution.

Estates General (France)
Image: Isidore-Stanislaus Helman (1743-1806) and Charles Monnet (1732-1808) · Public domain · Wikimedia Commons

Mentioned in 1 state history

Kingdom of France

See also

Cite this entry
APA
The Epoch Institute. (2026). Estates General (France). In The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia. https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/estates-general-france
MLA
“Estates General (France).” The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia, The Epoch Institute, 2026, https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/estates-general-france. Accessed .
Chicago
The Epoch Institute. “Estates General (France).” The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia. 2026. https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/estates-general-france.
Harvard
The Epoch Institute (2026) ‘Estates General (France)’, The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia. Available at: https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/estates-general-france (Accessed: ).

Last reviewed October 2026Random entry ↻