Besançon
[key], city, capital of Doubs dept., E France, in Franche-Comté, on
the Doubs. An industrial town with metallurgical, textile, and
food-processing industries, it is especially famous for its clock and watch
manufactures; its watch school is world renowned. Of Gallo-Roman origin,
Besançon was an archiepiscopal see from the 5th cent. Although part
of the kingdom of Burgundy, it was
made (by Emperor Frederick I) a
free city, with special privileges for its archbishops. It maintained its
independence, with interruptions, until 1648, when it passed under Spanish
rule through its incorporation with Franche-Comté. After Louis XIV's second conquest of
Franche-Comté (1674), Besançon became (1676) the capital of
his new province. Although bombed during World War II, many old monuments
remain: Roman ruins; the 17th-century citadel on a bluff above the city's
center; a cathedral (12th–16th cent.) with a bell tower that contains
a 19th-century astronomical clock; and numerous buildings in Spanish
Renaissance style, notably the Palais Granvelle (birthplace of Cardinal
Granvelle, now a
museum) and the imposing town hall. An intellectual center, Besançon
is the seat of a university (founded 1422 in Dôle and moved to
Besançon in 1691), a music academy (founded 1726), and an
international music festival.
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