The Delegates' First Day of Work

After a dedication procession the night before, the estates general began with a carefully orchestrated ceremony on may fifth in the largest hall at the palace versailles. The nobles were instructed to wear their silk finery, the clergy to wear their full vestments, and the third estate was to dress in sober black. It was as if they were being cast as merely a back drop for the real delegates from the first and second estates. But no matter, the momentous occasion could not be ruined by a dress coat. What it could be ruined by was some terribly boring and incomprehensible speeches.