The French Revolution is one of 9 topics in the Grade 10 History CAPS syllabus, covered across 3 lessons on Study Vault. Below are real practice questions from this topic with full worked answers.
Sample practice questions
Easy
1. Who was the King of France at the start of the French Revolution in 1789?
Louis XVI
Napoleon Bonaparte
Louis XIV
Robespierre
Answer: Louis XVI — King Louis XVI governed France as an absolute monarch at the start of the French Revolution in 1789.
Easy
2. Which estate made up roughly 97% of the French population but bore the overwhelming tax burden?
The Third Estate
The First Estate (clergy)
The Second Estate (nobility)
The royal family
Answer: The Third Estate — The Third Estate, comprising roughly 97% of the population, bore the overwhelming tax burden while the First and Second Estates enjoyed exemption from most taxation.
Medium
3. Name the 18th-century intellectual movement, whose thinkers questioned absolute monarchy and argued for reason and individual rights, that helped inspire the French Revolution.
Answer: The Enlightenment — The Enlightenment, an 18th-century intellectual movement whose thinkers questioned traditional royal and religious authority and argued for reason and individual rights, provided an intellectual framework for challenging the ancien regime.
