<P> On June 20th, 1789, the members of the French Estates - General for the Third Estate, who had begun to call themselves the National Assembly, took the Tennis Court Oath (French: Serment du Jeu de Paume), vowing "not to separate, and to reassemble wherever circumstances require, until the constitution of the kingdom is established". It was a pivotal event in the early days of the French Revolution . </P> <P> The Estates - General had been called to address the country's fiscal and agricultural crisis, but immediately after convening in May 1789, they had become bogged down in issues of representation--particularly, whether they would vote by head (which would increase the power of the Third Estate, as they outnumbered the other two estates hugely) or by order . </P> <P> On 17 June, the Third Estate, led by the comte de Mirabeau, began to call themselves the National Assembly . On the morning of 20 June, the deputies were shocked to discover that the chamber door was locked and guarded by soldiers . Immediately fearing the worst and anxious that a royal attack by King Louis XVI was imminent, the deputies congregated in a nearby indoor Jeu de paume court in the Saint - Louis district of the city of Versailles, near the Palace of Versailles . </P>

Calling of the estates general tennis court oath