National Assembly

National Assembly, any of various historical French parliaments or houses of parliament. From June 17 to July 9, 1789, it was the name of the revolutionary assembly formed by representatives of the Third Estate and dissenters from the first two estates (clergy and nobility). Thereafter (until it was replaced by the Legislative Assembly on September 30, 1791) its formal name was National Constituent Assembly (Assemblée Nationale Constituante), though popularly the shorter form persisted.

Although the assembly’s existence was brief, it was of key importance in French revolutionary events. The formation of the National Assembly represented the end of the French estates of the realm—the tripartite system of organizing social classes that had existed in France since the Middle Ages. The estates’ representative body, known as the Estates-General, was convened in 1789 for the first time since 1614, with the goal of finding solutions to France’s financial problems. The 1789 meeting proved to be its last, with the Estates-General being transformed into the National Assembly. During its short existence, the National Assembly issued two documents of major significance for France’s shift away from monarchy: the Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen and the Constitution of 1791. The assembly also issued the August Decrees, which annulled many of the obligations of peasants toward their landlords. In addition, the assembly curtailed the power of the Roman Catholic Church by nationalizing its land holdings and dissolving the religious orders.

The name was not used again until the National Assembly of 1871–75, which concluded the Franco-German War and drafted the constitution of 1875. During the ensuing Third Republic (1875–1940), it was the joint name for the two houses of parliament, the Senate and the Chamber of Deputies. During the Fourth Republic (1946–58), it was the new name of the lower house alone (the former Chamber of Deputies)—the name of the upper house (the former Senate) being changed to the Council of the Republic. For the Fifth Republic (beginning in 1958), the name National Assembly was retained for the lower house, and the upper house reverted to the name of Senate.

Popularly, the name National Assembly has often been used when referring to any constituent assembly (assemblée constituante)—not only the National Constituent Assembly of the Revolution but also the Constituent Assembly of 1848 (which created the Second Republic) and the Constituent Assembly of 1945–46 (which created the Fourth Republic).