Who was the absolute monarch at the start of the French Revolution who yielded power to the National Assembly and was later executed after the Republic was declared?

• A. King Louis XIII
• B. King Louis XVI
• C. King Louis XV
• D. Napoleon Bonaparte

Answer: (B)

The situation tests understanding of who led France at the start of the Revolution and what happened to the monarchy as the republic emerged. Louis XVI was the king then. He faced a financial and political crisis and, under pressure, allowed reforms to proceed and eventually yielded his ancient powers to the National Assembly, accepting a constitutional framework with limited royal authority. When the Republic was declared by revolutionary authorities in 1792, the monarchy was abolished, and Louis XVI was tried and executed in 1793. The other names listed either ruled in earlier centuries or rose to power after the Revolution, so they don’t fit the sequence described.