Page "Caste" Paragraph 121

Under the Ancien Régime, French society was divided into three estates (" États " in French ).

The first estate was the clergy, the second estate was the nobility, and the third estate were the commoners (" Tiers État " in French ).

The clergy itself was divided into an upper and a lower strata.

Even after the French Revolution, a closed system of social stratification continued through the 19th century.

These groups were endogamous, marriages were arranged particularly in the aristocracy and bourgeoisie classes.

Social mobility between these strata, regardless of an individual's effort, was difficult and uncommon.