Which document articulated grievances and asserted the rights of citizens during the French Revolution?

• A. The Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen
• B. The Magna Carta
• C. The Treaty of Westphalia
• D. The Napoleonic Code

Answer: (A)

The central idea here is a document that publicly stated the grievances of the people and laid out their inherent rights during the French Revolution. The Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen, drafted in 1789 by the National Assembly with influence from Enlightenment thinkers, declared that all men are born free and equal in rights and that liberty, property, security, and resistance to oppression are universal. It established principles of due process, freedom of speech and religion, and equality before the law, making it the defining statement of the revolution’s goals for citizen rights. The other items don’t fit this context: the Magna Carta is a medieval English charter limiting royal power, not about the French Revolution; the Treaty of Westphalia is a 1648 peace settlement in Europe; and the Napoleonic Code, while foundational in civil law, was created after the revolution and codified laws rather than articulating the revolutionary rights of citizens.