Question 1

True or false: The Declaration was originally called 'The Rights of Man and of the Citizen'.

Accepted Answer

True. Its full French title is 'Déclaration des Droits de l'Homme et du Citoyen', emphasizing both natural and civic rights.

Question 2

True or false: It guaranteed freedom of the press, but only for landowners.

Accepted Answer

False. Article 11 declared free communication of thoughts and opinions for all citizens, with no property requirement—a progressive stance for its time.

Question 3

True or false: The Declaration was heavily influenced by the American Declaration of Independence.

Accepted Answer

True. French revolutionaries admired the American Revolution and used concepts like natural rights and popular sovereignty from the U.S. Declaration.

Question 4

True or false: It was drafted by the Marquis de Lafayette, a hero of the American Revolution.

Accepted Answer

True. Lafayette proposed the first draft, modeled partly on Thomas Jefferson's ideas, though a committee revised it.

Question 5

True or false: It explicitly granted women the right to vote in 1789.

Accepted Answer

False. The Declaration used masculine language ('man' and 'citizen'), and women's suffrage wasn't granted until 1944 in France.

Question 6

True or false: It was signed by King Louis XVI to show his support for the Revolution.

Accepted Answer

False. Louis XVI refused to approve the Declaration for months; he only reluctantly accepted it after the Women's March on Versailles in October 1789.

Question 7

True or false: The Declaration abolished slavery in all French colonies immediately.

Accepted Answer

False. Slavery was not abolished by the 1789 Declaration; it was outlawed in 1794 but reinstated by Napoleon in 1802, then finally ended in 1848.

Question 8

True or false: The Declaration remains a living part of French constitutional law today.

Accepted Answer

True. It is incorporated into the preamble of France's current Constitution (1958) and is used by the Constitutional Council to review laws.

French declaration of human rights Trivia Questions