Besancon

Besancon is a city of the Is France, on the Doubs, Chef-lieu of the department of the Doubs and the area Franche-Comté. It is also seat of academy and ecclesiastical Province. Its inhabitants is called the Bisontins and the Bisontines .

Established in a Meander formed by the Doubs, the city plays a big role as of the time Gallo-Roman under the name of Vesontio . Its geography and its specific history made of it in turn a Fortified town military, a city of garrison, a political center and a religious capital.

Proclaimed first city green of France , the capital comtoise enjoys a recognized quality of life underlined by its social and environmental innovations. Thanks to its rich person cultural historical heritage and with his single architecture, Besancon is classified Ville of Art and History and is candidate with an inscription on the list of the world heritage of UNESCO.

Toponymy

A first written mention of the city is made by Jules César in his Commentaires on the War of Gaules under the name of Vesontio . At the 4th century, a B replaces the V of Vesontio and the name of the city becomes Besontio or Bisontion , then undergoes several transformations to give Besancon in 1243. Research on the origin of Vesontio name gave place to several interpretations but none is essential with certainty. More “satisfactory” the Celtic root wes- evokes which would indicate a mountain and which one would find in particular in the names of Vesuvius, Vesoul or Vézelay.

During the the Middle Ages, more precisely between the 9th century and the 12th century, the city is sometimes called Chrysopolis (" the town of gold "). The origin of this name, which appears in a writing of 821, is not either well established: presence of gold in the bed of Doubs, presence of many Roman buildings, joke " besan sum " (" I am a gold coin "), bringing together between Byzance and Besancon, Chrysopolis having been in the Antiquity the name of a district of Byzance…

Also, with the Belle Time, when the city knows intense a thermal activity, it is sometimes called Besancon them Bains .

Geography

Situation

Localization

The town of Besancon enjoys a Situation privileged on the European axis structuring called “the Rhine - the Rhone”, transportation route between the North Sea and the Mediterranean, Northern Europe and Europe of the South. It is located more precisely at the junction of the mountainous region of breeding of the Massif of the Jura (plates of the Haut-Doubs) and of vast the Plaine S cultivable fertile inhabitants of Franche-Compt3e, in the zone préjurassienne delimited by the folded zones known as of the Avant-Monts in north and the Besancon-native beam in the south.

It is in the north-western point of the department of the Doubs and is distant of approximately 90 kilometers of Dijon in Burgundy, of Lausanne in Suisse and of Belfort to the doors of the Alsace and the Germany. Its distance with the national capital, Paris, is of 327 kilometers as the crow flies for a course of 304°. It is to be also noticed that Besancon is located almost exactly in the middle of a segment Lyon - Strasbourg, each one of these cities being distant of approximately 190 kilometers.

Besancon belongs to the Métropole the Rhine-Rhone made up in 2004 with the towns of Dijon, Mulhouse, Belfort and Montbeliard and also associating since this date, the agglomeration trinationale of Basle, the urban community of Creusot - Montceau-the-Mines and Châlon-sur-saône.

Climate

Besancon is subjected to a double climatic influence, oceanic on the one hand (important precipitations as well in quantity as in frequency) and a strong continental influence on the other hand with hard winters (strong frosts, Neige) and summers hot and dry. Generally, the climate of Besancon is characterized by a strong variability, as well during a season as one year on the other. The following table gives an idea of the Besancon-native climate in comparison with the national average and some symbolic systems cities:

With 1.108 millimetres of precipitations per annum, the city one of is sprinkled country in company of Brest (1 109 mm/an) and Biarritz (1483 mm/an). These precipitations take place per annum on average 141 days, of which about thirty days with snowfalls. It profits in spite of that from good a 1.872 hours sunning per annum, varying 55 hours in December at 246 hours in August. It freezes on average 67 days per annum. The sector of Besancon is not very been windy, the speed of the wind reaching on average 2.2 m/s, with only one day per annum where one belongs to the gusts of at least 100 km/h.

The records of maximum and minimal temperature on Besancon are respectively of 40,3°C the July 28th 1921 and - 20,7°C on January 1st, 1985. The annual average temperature is of 10,2°C.

Transport and communications

Site

The town of Besancon also fits in a natural geographical site particularly remarkable. Indeed, the city initially developed in important a Méandre of the Doubs of almost one kilometer in diameter, taking the form of an almost perfect loop closed and overhung by the mount Saint-Etienne, a high plateau open on the the Jura and precipice on the side of the city, whose point is completely capped imposing citadel of Vauban. Then the city overflowed of this initial framework (of an average altitude of 250 meters) to extend in a basin surrounded by seven hills whose majority are capped with strong: Chaudanne (422 m), Bregille (458 m), Saint-Etienne (371 m), the Gold Rock (316 m), Planoise (490 m), Rosemont (466 m), Extremely-Benoit (360 m). Sometimes this configuration brings to make the comparison with the site of the town of Rome which is also dominated by seven hills.

This particular site thus constituted an ideal site of urban development for a long time, so much from a strategic and military point of view (defensive site) that economic and commercial (river outlet, Forêt S, Agriculture and breeding).

The historical center, corresponding to the district installed inside the meander of Doubs, said district of the Loop , and with the district of Leaf , first historical outgrowth on other bank, constitutes the exclusive site (or primitive site) of urban development until the Industrial revolution.

Urban morphology

Districts

According to the Agency of town planning of the agglomeration of Besancon (AUDAB), the commune is made up of fourteen large districts having an astonishing diversity, of Velotte (: 2000 inhabitants) with the paces of pastoral village to vast ZUP of Planoise (: 20000 inhabitants) while passing by Leaf, old district of vine growers.

Urban fabric

Structure

The old center constitutes a homogeneous and dense architectural whole made up of old residential buildings and well preserved public edifices. The majority of the buildings are built there in Pierre de Chailluz, stone Calcaire extracted from careers close to Besancon and of which the characteristic and to have two colors: Ocher with large spots of blue-gray color. This stone was forced in 1569 in order to put a term at the destroying fires which prevailed regularly and destroyed whole districts. The habitat is very tight there, leaving nevertheless the place to a multitude of back-yards and their sumptuous Escalier S with opened cage, one of specificities of Besancon, of which most famous is that of the Hotel of Champagney.

One of the characteristics of the buildings of Besancon is also the presence of round grids in Wrought iron fixed at the windows of the ground floors, evoking the rejas Spanish origin .

Town planning

Housing

According to the last census, the city counted in 1999 a total of: 61507 residences of which: 55159 were main homes: 5260 of the vacant housings, 755 occasional residences and 333 second home. One finds a vast majority of residences in apartment buildings which represent 84,8 % of the whole of the park of residences while the share of the individual residences rises with 15,2 % in 1999: however, between 1990 and 1999, the number of individual residences progressed more quickly (+ 30,7 %) that of multifamily apartments (+ 13,9 %).

The park of the main homes is overall growing old since 24,6 % of those go back to before 1949, 45,3 % were completed between 1949 and 1974, 17,7 % of 1975 with 1989 and finally 12,4 % in 1990 or afterwards.

With regard to the social housing, the city in account: 14598 on a total of: 55159 main homes, is a proportion of 26,5 % which largely exceeds the threshold of 20 % required by the law SRU. The localization of this social housing is concentrated in the south-west of the commune (Planoise, Rosemont and Grette) with 45,8 % of the unit and with the east (Palente, Orchamps, Light-Suns) which represents 14,2 % of the communal park.

Projects of installation

Many projects are under development or of finalization in the city at the beginning of XXIe century. The redevelopment project of the small island Pasteur , in the district of the Loop, was adopted in 2004 and should be delivered in 2009: it is a question of creating an integral real unit: 17500 m ² approximately of commercial surfaces and: 8400 m ² of residences and to refit the Pasteur place. Another sector in full reorganization and that concerning the waste lands of the river port and the Rhodia factory which is dedicated to becoming a " campus culturel": construction of the SMAC (room of current musics), of the City of Arts and the Culture (integrating the new academy and the Funds Regional of Contemporary art).

Demography

History

Currencies and heraldic

See also: Flags of Besancon

Utinam (“God Likes ”): “official” currency of the city which one finds in particular on the fountain of the place Jean Cornet, on the pediments of the school of Rivotte and the Law courts, on the war memorial.

Deo and caesari fidelis perpetuo (“ eternal Fidelity with God and César ”). This currency at summer substituted for the preceding one in 1815 but was employed only little time before the currency Utinam is taken again.

the Blason of the city consists of a eagle allotted to the city by the Germanic emperor Charles Quint in 1537 surrounded by two triumphal columns evoking the Gallo-Roman antique quoted Vesontio. In the beginning, the eagle was bicephalous like that of the Habsbourg.

Prehistory

In the beginnings, an ideal site of settlement
The passage of hunters-gatherers tonic with: 50000 years, during the period of the Paleolithic means, was attested.
The excavations carried out during the last centuries made it possible to reveal traces of occupation of the site as of the Neolithic along the Doubs, in particular with the foot of the hills of the Rock of Gold and Rosemont, these traces of habitat being gone back to: 4000 years before J. - C. approximately.

Antiquity

the Gallic oppidum of Vesontio
At the 2nd century before our era, the Oppidum is the possession of the Séquanes, people Gallic (see Celtes) which controls a vast territory extending between the the Rhone, the the Saone, the the Jura and the the Vosges. The presence of public installations at that time is attested by excavation campaigns; oldest were discovered at the time of the preventive excavations carried out on the site of the ramparts levelled down in 2001. The city was girdled by a wall of bank ( murus gallicus ) whose vestiges were put at the day on this same site. Outside a district of craftsmen was. The Oppidum, of the name of Vesontio (in Latin), was then the economic center of Séquanie and it is for this reason that he is coveted by the Germains then by the Éduens before Jules César does not make of it the conquest in 58 av. J. - C..
Vesontio, Gallo-Roman city
Jules César, impressed by this strategic site that it describes in its Commentaires on the War of Gaules, decides to make of it the capital of the Gallic tribe of the Séquanes ( Civitas Maxima Sequanorum ) as well as a military citadel and a crossroads of exchanges of Gaulle Roman. The city knows a golden age then, it becomes one of the more big cities of the Gaulle Belgium, then of the province of Germanic higher.
In 68 after J.C, it is the theater of the Bataille of Besancon opponent Lucius Verginius Rufus, faithful of the emperor Néron, with Gaius Julius Vindex, a rebel who is overcome and ends up committing suicide. The Romans increase the city and embellish it by building there many buildings on both sides of the Cardo (current Main street) and even on Right Bank of Doubs where they raise a amphitheater (Arenas of Besancon) which can accommodate until: 20000 spectators. The basement of the city abounds in witnesses of this time, one counts indeed not less than 200 points of discovered in the the Loop and the districts located at the immediate surroundings.
Under the Tétrarchie, the city becomes the capital of “Provincia Maxima Sequanorum”. Among the most important vestiges, one can quote the Black Porte set up under Marc-Aurèle in 175 a. J. - C. to celebrate the repression of the disorders from 172 to 175 a. J. - C. the colonnades of the Square Castan, the conduits of the Roman Aqueduc which fed water Vesontio, the remainders of the amphitheater and the domus of the law courts and that of the Lumière college where was found an impressive mosaic known as of the Jellyfish in very good state of conservation. In 360, the emperor Julien, of passage to Vesontio, described a “village collected on itself”, a city on the decline which is hardly more than one village.

The Middle Ages
Shortly after the fall of Rome, Clovis Ier, king mérovingiens of the Francs, undertakes to bring together the Gallic people under his order. The Séquanes are thus attached to the kingdom at the same time as the Burgondes and the Alamans. The history of Besancon at the beginning of the Middle Ages is very badly known, the documents and indices being largely insufficient. In 821, one finds trace of a first text mentioning the city under name Chrysopolis . Of 843 with 869, the diocese of Besancon is attached to the Lotharingie, then, with died of Lothaire II, becomes possession of Charles the Bald person under the terms of the signature of the Traité of Meerssen (870) and is thus integrated into the kingdom of France until in 879.
Besancon, ecclesiastical metropolis
It is in 888 that Eudes Ier de France, in its feudalization of the kingdom, founds the duchies and counties of Burgundy. This last having for capital Dole is attached to the Comté of Varais in which Besancon is. This county will have for first count (said " Count Palatine of Bourgogne") Otte-Guillaume of Burgundy (982 - 1026). Besancon becomes also episcopal see as an independent archbishop's palace. Last king de Bourgogne, Rodolphe III, not having male descendants, bequeaths his Burgundian goods to his nephew Henri II of the Holy roman Empire.
In 1032, like all the County of Burgundy, Besancon is thus attached to the Saint Germanic Roman Empire. The Archbishop of Besancon, Hugues Saline, thanks to the support of the Emperor, becomes the lord of the city, which thrives under its impulse. After the death of this one in 1066, a fight for its succession plunges Besancon during one long period of crisis. Also, during all Middle Ages, Besancon will remain a city directly subjected to the authority imperial and independent of the County of Burgundy, whose Dole is the capital.
Besancon, imperial free city
During, the Residents of Besancon fight against the authority of the archbishops and obtain finally their communal freedoms in 1290. While remaining submitted to the Emperor, Besancon is controlled by itself, thanks to a council of twenty-eight notable elected officials to the Vote for all male with several degrees and with a council of fourteen governors appointed by the notable ones. Besancon will remain thus a “free city” during nearly 400 years.
The Dukes of Burgundy, become Masters of the Franche-Comté, are the “guards” of the imperial free city which remains always Besancon. It is for the city one boom.

Modern time
To the time of the Rebirth, the Franche-Comté belongs again to the Germanic Empire following the death of Charles Bold the. The emperor Charles Quint strengthens considerably Besancon which becomes one of the shields of its Empire. Comtois, Nicolas Perrenot de Granvelle, becomes Chancelier Empire in 1519 then Minister of Justice in 1532. All the area profits from the favors of Charles Quint and Besancon becomes the fifth imperial city and embellishes monuments, in particular the Palais Granvelle and the Town hall whose frontage is decorated of a statue of Charles Quint. The city counts then: 8000 with: 9000 inhabitants in 1518, population which would have passed between: 11000 and: 12000 inhabitants in 1608. The economy of the city is deeply rural, in particular by the presence of the vine growers with Battant who represented half to see the three quarters of the population and thus made vine growing the principal activity of the city.
the " century souffrant" and the French conquest
Whereas the city had lived one time of progress at the 16th century, the 17th century is marked by the wars and a great misery.
In 1631, the city twice accommodates the duke Gaston of Orleans, brother of the king and personal enemy of the cardinal of Richelieu. The war Ten Year old (1635 - 1644), Burgundian episode of the War Thirty Year old, brings in the area the plagues of the Peste, the Famine and misery. Besancon, which has escaped several times at a seat, suffers nevertheless same plagues as its devastated back-country: the plague makes its appearance in 1636 while one period of famine extends from 1638 with 1644.
A treaty of exchange between the German city of Frankenthal (pertaining to the king d' Espagne) and Besancon (concerning the Empire), suggested starting from 1651, is finally accepted by the Residents of Besancon in 1664. For one short period (1664 - 1674), Besancon loses its statute of free city then and becomes possession of the crown of Spain. The truce is only of short duration and the February 8th 1668, the army of Condé is opened up the doors of the city after the local authorities capitulated. The French occupation is rather badly lived and the French troops turn back as of the June 9th. The defense of the city having been badly ensured, one undertakes the improvement of the fortifications then: the first stone of the citadel is posed with the Saint-Etienne Mount the September 29th 1668 and at the other end, of important work are undertaken around Charmont (on the heights of Battant).
The April 26th 1674, the duke of Enghien is of return and gives an opinion in front of the city with the head of an army made up of: 15000 with: 20000 men. At the end of a seat of twenty-seven days to which Louis XIV, Vauban and Louvois assist, the citadel falls finally between the hands from besieging the May 22nd. Besancon, after several vain attempts, becomes finally the capital of the Franche-Comté to the detriment of Dole by letters patent of October 1st 1677: a great number of administrations, among which the military government, the intendance, the Parliament or the university, are gradually established in the new capital. The Treated of Nimègue, signed the August 10th 1678, definitively attaches the city and its area to the kingdom of France. Louis XIV decides to do of Besancon one of the essential links of the defense system of the East of France and entrusts to Vauban the responsibility to carry out the improvements necessary. The citadel is thus entirely altered between 1674 and 1688, the other fortifications are built of 1689 with 1695 and many barracks leave ground starting from 1680. The construction of the citadel was very expensive, so much so that Louis XIV would have asked whether its walls were not out of gold…
One era of prosperity
At the 18th century, under the impulse of remarkable intendants, the Franche-Comté knows one boom and Besancon doubles its population (: 14000 with: 32000 inhabitants), while covering monuments and private mansions.

Contemporary time

a city on the decline
With leaving the Revolution, Besancon does not lose its Archevêché and its statute of capital, not being any more but the chief town of a private department of the arable lands most productive of the low country. Population, estimated at: 32000 inhabitants the day before the Revolution, declines with: 25328 inhabitants in 1793 to go back timidly only to: 28463 in 1800. However, it is also during this period that clock making industry settles in the city following creation in 1793 of a manufacture of Horlogerie by a group of Swiss refugees carried out by the clock and watch maker Genevese Laurent Mégevand, expelled of Suisse for its political activities. The activity starts with difficulty, in particular because of hostility on the one hand of the population, but the number of clock and watch makers is estimated at: 1000 in 1795 and the production of watches progresses all the same of: 14700 parts in the Year III (1794-1795) with: 21400 in the Year XI (1802-1803).
From one war to another (1870-1945)
Under the Third Republic, Besancon knows a relative stagnation, its population oscillating around: 55000 inhabitants during several decades. Independently of demography, the clock industry continues its rise, producing: 395000 watches in 1872 then: 501602 in 1883. Thus, according to the chamber of commerce, Besancon took part in 1880 for 90% of the French clock making production and counted approximately: 5000 semi-skilled workers in this sector and: 10000 workers working there at wasted time. Having to face Swiss competition, the sector undergoes a crisis in the following years before being raised at the beginning of the 20th century to produce: 635980 articles in 1900 but not to employ more but: 3000 workmen and workers in 1910. Other industries develop at that time: breweries (of which most famous is the Gangloff brewery), paper mills, metallurgy… It is especially the textile which is essential like one of the sectors flourishing when the count Hilaire de Chardonnet, inventor of a manufactoring process of artificial Soie, makes it possible its town of industrially use its process in a Silk trade open on the site of Meadow-of-Are worth in 1891.
It is also at the end of the 19th century that the " city; invente" a thermal vocation by creating in 1890 the Company of the saline Baths of Mouillère. The Tourisme develops then around the product of call of Besancon-the-Baths which generates the construction of a hydropathic establishment, Hotel of the Baths, a casino, the theater of Kursaal and the opening of a tourist office in May 1896.
At the time of the Second world war, the German army enters to Besancon the June 16th 1940 although the French military authorities decided to blow up the bridges to the approach of the occupant. The city finds in occupied Zone (the Line of demarcation is only with approximately 30 kilometers in the west) and even in closed Area, which implies that it is annexed to the Reich in the event of victory of the Germany. The city undergoes overall little destruction during the war, if it is not the bombardment in the night from July 15th to 16th 1943 of the district of Viotte by the English aviation whose bomber is crushed on the station: the assessment of 50 died, 40 seriously injureds and a hundred slightly injureds. The Résistance is organized tardily, perpetrating its first attacks in spring 1942: the Germans counteract by arrests and 16 resistant is carried out in the enclosure of the Citadelle of Besancon the September 26th 1943, 83 will undergo the same fate thereafter. The 6th American army corps takes possession of Besancon on September 8th, 1944 after four days of engagements and it is thus a released city which visit the general de Gaulle the September 23rd.
an expansion without precedent (1945-1973) With leaving the war, the city like all the country, fact face with a rapid growth. Demographic rise is particularly sharp, the city doubling its population in hardly more than 20 years (of: 63508 inhabitants in 1946 with: 113220 inhabitants in 1968), and particularly between 1954 and 1962 where its progression of 38.5% is exceeded only by the towns of Grenoble and of Caen. The transportation routes accompany only with difficulty this evolution, the electrification of the railway line towards Paris intervening only in 1970, the setting with large gauge of the channel being considered only starting from 1975 while the highway does not arrive to Besancon in 1978. As for the possibility of developing an airport with Vèze, the idea is well quickly buried.
The clock making industry remains dominant but is in retreat, passing from 50% of the industrial employment in 1954 to 35% in 1962 and yielding the step gradually vis-a-vis other sectors in full rise such as the textile , the building or food industry. In 1962, three companies exceed the 1000 employees: clock making firms Lip and Kelton-Timex, and the textile factory of the Rhodia céta. That does not prevent Besancon from confirming its statute of capital of the French clock industry grace in particular to its administrative offices (head offices) and scientists (teaching and research). The textile and the clothes industry know in addition an unquestionable dynamism, Rhodia employing until: 3300 employees in 1966 and the family company Weil reached: 1500 uses in 1965, becoming thus the first French company of male clothes industry.
Vis-a-vis this exponential growth, the municipality decides to answer in particular the housing shortage by beginning in 1952 construction from the cities from Montrapon and Palente - Orchamps and in 1960 that from the three buildings called the 408 (in reference to the number of residences) by the Residents of Besancon which accommodate a population mainly working. The realization of this equipment is rather anarchistic and a equipment and modernization plan is elaborate between 1961 and 1963 envisaging the creation of Z.U.P. of Planoise, of the industrial parks of Palente and Trépillot, and of the university campus of Bouloie. One also envisages the realization of three boulevards allowing to flux circulation.
The city becomes regional capital thanks to the creation of the districts of regional action by a decree of June 2nd, 1960.
Crises and reconversions (1973 at our days)
The Oil crisis of 1973 opens for Besancon the beginning of a difficult economic crisis devastating its industry and abruptly coming to stop its fulgurating rise. This crisis is initially symbolized by famous the business Lip which will mark the history of the city durably. The clock making company is indeed threatened of a plan of dismissals in spring 1973 and then gives rise to a social struggle of a new kind based on the Autogestion and causing a national momentum of solidarity which culminates the September 29th with the " go Lip" which sees ravelling: 100000 people in a dead city. After having foreseen a pretense of restarting of the activity, voluntary liquidation is inescapable and Lip disappears in 1977. In 1982, it is a new hard blow for the city with the closing of the Rhodia factory which leaves at the pithead close to: 2000 paid, just like the clock making company Kelton-Timex shortly after. During the Nineties, it is another floret of the Besancon-native industry which is erased, since the company of Weil clothes industry delocalizes and manpower pass of more than one thousand of paid to a small hundred. In nearly 20 years, the city thus loses close to: 10000 industrial employment and seems to be able to be raised some with difficulty.
Grace in particular to the laws of decentralization of 1982, the city passes from an industrial calling to a tertiary center. Clock making, old know-how of more than two centuries, is emphasized to reconvert itself successfully into the branches of the Microtechnique S, the precision mechanics and the Nanotechnologies on the level Européen and in the specific field of the time-frequency on a worldwide scale. Other assets like quality of life and the inheritance, or the situation on the axis the Rhine-Rhone, one of the axes structuring on a European scale, allow Besancon, the beginning of XXIe century, to take a new departure.

Administration

The city is the chief town of the area Franche-Comté, of the department of the Doubs and the district of Besancon. It is in addition the seat of the academy of Besancon and the ecclesiastical Province of Besancon. It is also with the head of the Communauté of agglomeration of Large Besancon.

Political life

See also: List of the mayors of Besancon

See also: Municipal elections in Besancon

See also: Sociology of Besancon
The current mayor of Besancon east Jean-Louis Fousseret (PS), elected in 2001 with the second turn with 55,3 % of the votes against 44,7 % with Jean Rosselot (UMP).
As any commune whose population lies between: 100000 and: 149999 inhabitants, Besancon is managed by a Municipal council composed of fifty five elected officials.
To the presidential elections of 2007, the city carried the socialist candidate Ségolène Royal in front of her counterpart UMP Nicolas Sarkozy with respectively 53 % against 47 % of the votes at the time of the second turn. The capital comtoise with specificity to remain one of the rare socialist bastions in a department of the Doubs whose main cities are anchored on the right (whereas the general advice is on the left since 2004). However, the two departmental districts between which Besancon is divided elected the UMP candidates in 2007, whereas in 1977, one counted two elected officials PS.

Administrative cutting

Besancon is divided into 6 cantons:

Teaching

Primary school education
One counts in Besancon, for the re-entry 2006, 44 nursery schools including 39 public and 5 private schools. The distribution by district of these schools is done in the following way (for the list of the schools, to refer to the articles on the corresponding districts):

One counts 40 in addition elementary schools including 35 public and 5 private with the re-entry 2006.

Secondary education
The city counts 11 colleges, 7 colleges of mainstream education and 10 vocational schools.

Higher education
The University of Franche-Comté, mainly located at Besancon, counts: 22800 students divided out of six UFR, including five in Besancon and 580 pupils - engineers with the 3Ecole Nationale Sup3erieure of mechanics and microtechnic of Besancon (ENSMM). Are added to it more: 2400 accommodated French or foreign trainees each year by the Center of Linguistics Applied (CLA), specialized in the intensive training of the languages. It shelters finally the regional École of the fine arts of Besancon.

Health
The city accommodates on its territory of many health care institutions whose main thing is the University hospital (C.H.U.) currently distributed on two sites (hospital Saint-Jacob with the downtown area and Hôpital Jean Minjoz in Châteaufarine) but whose whole of the services will be gathered in the long term (2012) on the site of Minjoz within the pole health of the Technopole Temis. The C.H.U of Besancon is particularly famous in the fields of bio-engineering, the Microrobotique applied to health and for its pole Cancérologie. The other notable establishments are the polyclinic of Franche-Comté and the Saint-Vincent private clinic.

Economy

Reference mark
Before the crisis of the years 1970 and 1980 which causes many closings and delocalizations of companies of the city, the Besancon-native economy is mainly turned towards the industrial sector, in particular the Horlogerie and the textile . Today, the tertiary sector is the principal provider of employment (see table), industry being represented only by one string of Small and medium-size companies specialized in particular in the Microtechniques, the Nanotechnologie and the Mécanique (Découpage, Emboutissage). Besancon thus passed from the statute of capital of the watch to the capital of the infinitely small. This successful reconversion currently makes it possible the town of profit from a certain dynamism and of a solid economic fabric but the change was not done without clashes and of many suppressions of employment. Indeed, in a city whose history is marked by a tradition of Socialisme and Utopisme, conflicts emblematic deeply mark the economic and social landscape as well at the local level as national. Thus, the great strike of the textile factory Rhodiaceta in 1967, preceding the events of May 68, celebrates it business Lip in 1973, of the name of this clock making company declared in bankruptcy which was at the origin of a social struggle of a new kind leading to an original experiment of Autogestion, or the delocalizations of the clock making companies Kelton and Timex and textile Weil.
In 1999, the full number of credits on the commune of Besancon east of 52.184, being distributed in the various economic sectors as follows:
At December 31st, 2003, Besancon counted: 6489 private establishments representing: 37795 employment.
Unemployment rate was of 8,1 % in 2005 and was estimated in December 2006 at 7,9 % in the zone of use of Besancon, a figure slightly lower than the national average (8,6 %).
The districts most provided in employment are those of the Center (the Loop and Midsummer's Day) - Chapelle of the Boxwood which concentrated 25,9 % of the Besancon-native uses in 1999, of the Tilleroyes (15,3 %), of Planoise - Châteaufarine (11 %) and of Montrapon - Montboucons (10,7 %).

Industry
Mechanical and microtechnic
After having been the French capital of the Clock industry, Besancon was reconverted by using its know-how to specialize in the branches of micromechanics, of the Microtechniques, the Nanotechnologie S, the Optique and the electronic . The city constitutes since June 2005 with other zones of the area Franche-Comté a national Pole of competitiveness in the field of the microtechniques ones. The majority of these activities is concentrated within the Technopole Temis ( Te chnopole crotechnic Mi and S cientific) which gathers on 137 ha undertaken, research laboratories and training institutes specialized in the field of the microtechniques ones and of the biomedical one. Their promotion is ensured by the living room Micronora, international fair of the microtechniques ones, which is held every two years. On the whole, the sector of microtechnic represents in the city approximately 350 companies, 500 researchers and: 11000 employment for an annual turnover of 1.36 billion euros.
The principal industrial companies of Besancon in this sector are, according to their number of employees:

various Industries
Except the microtechniques ones, mechanics and the nanotechnologies, there does not exist different great industrial sector in Besancon since the crisis of textile industry. Among the few other notable sectors, one can quote the Métallurgie with the company Stanley Tools (123 paid) which manufactures hand tooling; the Plasturgie represented mainly by the firm Superfos Besancon (134 paid) which produces plastic packagings; the Agroalimentaire through the company LU France (167 paid) celebrates for its cookies.

Tertiary sector
In the the Community of Agglomeration of Large Besancon (CAGB), the tertiary sector concentrates 85 % of the establishments and 75 % of the employee job.
Administration and public services
The Hospital of Besancon (more: 5000 paid) is the largest provider of use of the capital comtoise, followed common of Besancon (: 2800 paid), of the mutual Agricultural credit of Franche-Comté (: 1500 paid), of the department of the Doubs (900 to 1000 paid), of the SNCF (600 to 700 paid), of the communal center of social action, and the control of public transport Ginko, which employs from 500 to 600 paid.
Besancon is the seat of the CCI of Doubs which manages the river port, the Aérodrome of Besancon it Vèze like various warehouses and of CRCI of Franche-Comté.
Army
The army also holds an important place since the Garnison of Besancon remains today one of most important of France, with close to: 1650 Military S and 400 civil personnel of the Army. Its components are the Staff of force n°1 (installed in the Ruty district), the 6th regiment of the Matériel, the 7 {{E}} armor-plated brigade and the 19 {{E}} Régiment of the Genius (19th RG) of Besancon (installed in the Vauban district), the 7th Company of Command and Transmissions (7th CCT) of Besancon and the 7th Battalion of the Train (7th BT) of Besancon.
Trade
The city is equipped with dense commercial spaces in the districts of the downtown area with in particular the two large commercial arteries of the Main street and the street of the Barns , like on the three peripheral zones of Châteaufarine to the west, Valentine in north and Chalezeule in the east. One notes a strong representation of the large distribution with the presence of three Hypermarché S (Crossroads Valentine and Carrefour Chalezeule, 400 paid each one; Châteaufarine giant, 300 paid), a Supermarket of 100 paid (Super U Friendship), a department store (Lafayette Galleries, 100 paid) and a commercial space of sport (Decathlon, 100 paid).

Culture and Inheritance

See also: Images of Besancon

Besancon is classified Ville of Art and History since the February 14th 1986.
On the initiative of the town of Besancon, a Réseau of the major sites of Vauban was created in 2005. January 5th, 2007, the ministry for the culture with decided that the file of the Major Sites of Vauban would represent France in June 2008 for an inscription on the Liste of the world heritage of UNESCO.
The district Battant was the subject of a Secteur safeguarded of thirty-one hectares in 1964 while in 1994 was created a sector safeguarded of 237 hectares for the Loop and the zones of accompaniment, the unit currently constituting the greatest safeguarded sector of France.
One counts approximately 170 historic buildings in Besancon.

Civil architecture

Gallo-Roman vestiges

During Antiquity, Vesontio is an important metropolis of Gaulle Roman. She avoids monuments of which some remained, the archaeological excavations led to the liking of the building sites often revealing new discoveries gone back to this period.

: Gallo-Roman Triumphal arch built under Marc Aurèle at the 2nd century. Strongly deteriorated by the risks of time and pollution, it is the object at this beginning of 21e century long and difficult operation of restoration.
Public garden Castan : together of archaeological vestiges of the 2nd century or the 3rd century in particular made up of eight Corinthian columns.
Vestiges of the Arenas : only some steps and foundations were updated, its stones having been largely used with the Middle Ages for the construction of other buildings.

Military fortifications and buildings
The major part of the current system of fortification (citadel, urban enclosure made up of the ramparts and bastions, Strong Griffon) is the work of Vauban. It is this unit which represents Besancon for the candidature of the major Sites of Vauban for the list of the world heritage of UNESCO. The strong present on the other hills all were built at the 19th century. The only remaining pre-Vauban fortifications are the Rivotte Door, the Cut Door, the Square Tower and the Tower of the Ball.
the Citadel : built by Vauban of 1678 with 1771, it is with more: 250000 visitors each year the site more visited Franche-Comté. It extends on 11 hectares at the top from the Saint-Etienne Mount at an altitude ranging between 330 meters and 370 meters, thus dominating the meander of Doubs which has an altitude ranging between 240 and 250 meters. It gathers in its center a museum of Resistance and Deportation, a museum of the life comtoise, the regional service of archeology and a zoo. It is the symbol of the city.
Ramparts of Vauban : the fortifications of the Loop are rebuilt of 1675 with 1695. Vauban indeed substitutes for the medieval defenses restored and supplemented by Charles Quint at the 16th century a belt equipped with bastionnées towers.

Door Rivotte : dating from the 16th century, it is composed of two round towers with pepper plantations one of a pediment on which is carved the sun of Louis XIV.
Cut Door : opened in the rocks, it is the work of the Romans. It marks the entry of the city on the road of the Suisse. It is surmounted by a body of guard and a tower of guets built in 1546.
Square Tower : located in the walk of Glacis, it is also called Tour of Leaf or Turn of Montmart. It was built in 1526.
Turn of Cordeliers : pentagonal bastionnée tower completed in 1691
Turn of Chamars
Tower of the Ball : located quay of Strasbourg, it was built in 1546 by the communal government on order of Charles Quint. Its name would come from the former owner of the ground where it was built, Pierre Pillot, lord of Chenecey.
Strong Griffon : its name comes from the Italian architect who was charged to build it in 1595, Jean Griffoni. It was then completely altered by Vauban. Sold by the Army in 1947, it is affected at the teacher training school teachers then with IUFM.
Extremely of Chaudanne : built 1837 with 1842, its official name is strong Baudrand.
Extremely of Bregille : built 1820 with 1832, its official name is strong Morand.
Extremely of Planoise : built 1877 with 1880, its official name is strong Moncey. It is used nowadays by the Companions of Emmaüs.
Strong Benoit : built 1877 with 1880
Strong Tousey
Extremely of Three Châtels
Extremely of Beauregard : built in 1830
Extremely of Rosemont : battery built during the war of 1870-1871
Extremely of Montboucons : built 1877 with 1880
Extremely of Justices : built as from 1870.
Barracks Ruty : old Saint-Paul barracks. It is made up of four houses surrounding a court being used as place of Weapons and dating from XVIIIe and XIXe centuries. Currently, it is the staff of the 7th Armor-plated Brigade and staff of force 1 (EMF 1)

Palate and private mansions

Law courts : in the beginning, it was about the second body of building of the Town hall. Indeed, in 1582, the municipality decides to increase the Town hall to establish its court and its vault there. Construction was entrusted by it to the architect Hugues Sambin who was inspired largely by the spirit of the Rebirth. It is currently the seat of the Court of Appeal.
Palate Granvelle : renaissance palate of the 16th century does not build Nicolas Perrenot de Granvelle, Chancelier and Minister of Justice of the emperor Charles Quint. It shelters today the Musée of Time. Classified Historic building in 1862.
Hotel of the Intendance : current prefecture of Doubs, it was built of 1770 with 1778 at the request of the intendant Charles de Lacoré. The plans were carried out by the Parisian great architect Victor Louis and the work directed by the Besancon-native architect Nicolas Nicole. He adopts the traditional plan of the private mansions, with a main courtyard presenting a frontage made up of six surmounted ionic columns of a pediment and a garden to the back of the building whose frontage is decorated of a rotunda advancing slightly on the garden.
Town hall : built by the architect Richard Maire who completed it in 1573, it presents a frontage to embossings in the spirit of the palates of the Italian rebirth. A great niche in the frontage sheltered until the Revolution a bronze statue of Charles Quint overlapping an eagle with two heads. Classified Historic building in 1912. The old center of Besancon in addition comprises about thirty private mansions the 16th century, 17th century and 18th century, remarkable in particular by their frontages out of stone of Chailluz blue-gray and ocher, their monumental courses interior and their external staircases.
Hotel Mareschal : it belonged to an important Besancon-native family, the Mareschal. Set fire to the June 4th 1516, Guillaume Mareschal made it rebuild in 1532 with a decorative flora which announces the Rebirth. It placed at the pediment of the main door an escutcheon with its weapons: “Of money to the band of azure charged with three stars of gold and accompanied by two bunches of grapes of crimson, broken into leaf and tigées of Sinople, that of the point having the tail in bottom” which was still seen with the Revolution.
Hotel of Champagney : built to the 37 of the street Beating by Jacques Bonvalot, lord of Champagney, his construction dates from first half of the 16th century. His/her daughter Nicole Bonvalot, widow of Nicolas de Granvelle, made alter the buildings and arrange the court of 1560 with 1565 by the architect Richard Maire. He is characterized by the four beautiful Gargouille S which decorates its frontage and by its interior court with passage arched of stop and galleries with wood columns of a great beauty. The unit is classified with the Historic buildings since 1966.
Hotel of the Baths : created in 1890, it is the vestige of an old luxurious balneal complex including/understanding a hydropathic establishment, a casino and the Hotel, the whole surrounded by gardens and parks.
Hotel of Grammont : old hotel of Chambrier (treasurer of the episcopal room) rebuilt at the 18th century. It is currently the seat of the District council of Franche-Comté.
Hotel Burrow of Santans : built between 1770 and 1772 for the marquis Terrier of Santans, first president at the Parliament, by the architect Claude Bertrand.
Among about thirty private mansions, others less important but remarkable nevertheless are the Michotey hotels (and its house of music decorated); Chevanney, Gauthiot d' Ancier, Bonvalot, of Bouteiller (16th century); from Antwerp (17th century); Camus, Burrow, Courbouzon, Magnoncourt, of Clévans, Quettet and of Rosières (18th century).

Others

See also: decorative Inheritance of Besancon

municipal Theater : order of the intendant Charles-Andre de Lacoré with Claude Nicolas Ledoux which drew the plans of them and construction entrusted some to Claude-Joseph-Alexandre Bertrand who began in 1778 to be completed by his inauguration the August 9th 1784 under the crook of Louis V Joseph de Bourbon-Cop. Of a capacity of 2000 places, he was regarded as very innovative because equipped with a floor sitting, of a room in amphitheater without cabins and it was the first in the world to have an orchestra pit. April 29th, 1958, a dramatic fire completely destroyed the interior and the roof of the building. The walls are the only witnesses who remained, of which the monumental frontage and its six columns.
municipal Casino : installed in a building of style Beautiful Time, it was inaugurated in 1882.
astronomical Clock : located in the cathedral Midsummer's Day, it was ordered in 1858 by the Mathieu cardinal with Auguste-Lucien Vérité.
Quay Vauban : together monumental of houses with arcades 1692 with builds 1695.
Hospital Saint-Jacob : work of this hospital which had vocation to replace that located street of Arenas began in 1686 to be completed in 1702. Its grid of monumental entry , carried out by the metal worker Nicolas Chapuis in 1703 was replaced by a copy.
Factory Dodane : L-shaped reinforced concrete building whose construction was entrusted by the Dodane clock and watch maker to the architect Auguste Perret who also drew the elements of interior decoration. It is decorated of a private including/understanding swimming pool and tennis court garden. The unit was completed in 1943.
Coffee the Commercial : brewery of second half of the 19th century with a rich person interior decoration style Beautiful Time. Registered voter with the Historic buildings in 1981.
National school of Clock industry : built 1928 with 1932 by the architect Guadet, it shelters today the Lycée Jules Haag.
astronomical Observatory : created by order in Council in 1878 and classified Historic building in 2007. The buildings of the astronomical Observatoire are high of 1883 with 1884 according to plans of the architect Etienne-Bernard Saint-Ginest.

Structure crowned

After having acquired an episcopal see as of the 3rd century, the churches and the abbeys multiply for the period of the Early middle ages. Important constructions or rebuildings of the religious buildings take place then at the 11th century during the episcopate of Hugues Ier Saline and many churches are clearings or rebuilt after the French conquest of 1674. In 1842, the church of the Holy Spirit is officially yielded to the Protestant community while the Jewish community inaugurates its Synagog in 1869. Lastly, the Muslim community makes build two mosques at the end of the 20th century and at the beginning of the 21e century.
Archbishop's palace of Besancon : located in the Boitouset hotel.
Cathedral Midsummer's Day : Gothic Cathedral of the 9th century, 12th century and 18th century. It comprises two apses. It contains a chief of work of FRA Bartolomeo, the table of the Vierge to the Saints paints in 1512.
Church Saint-Pierre : built by the resident of Besancon Bertrand of 1782 with 1786.
Church Saint-Maurice : rebuilt 1711 with 1714, frontage of style Jesuit surmounted by a Chime.
Church of the Madeleine : raised 1746 with 1766 on plans of Nicolas Nicole but definitively finished in 1828 - 1830 by the construction of its two turns, of which one is used as perch with the famous automat bell ringer Jacquemart. Its roof is made up of glazed polychrome tiles.
Church Notre-Dame : old founded Abbey Benedictine E Saint-Vincent at the 11th century. It is under the Empire that it becomes the parish church Notre-Dame. Its frontage at summer conceived in 1720 by the Gazelot architect. One still distinguishes there the large gate from entry of the abbey and the tower of the bell S of the 16th century. It today occupied by the faculty of Letters and Social sciences.
Church Saint-François-Xavier : old vault of the college of the Jesuits, it is built between 1680 and 1688. Its plan is in the shape of Latin cross surrounded by small side chapels. It was unused in 1975.
Temple of the Holy Spirit : old Old people's home of the Holy Spirit, it was affected at the Protestant community in 1842. The church is a building Gothic of the 13th increased century of a vault at the 15th century and deprived of its bell-tower during the Revolution. It is characterized by its gallery from carved wood, masterpiece of an anonymous artist. Its gate neogothic was carried out in 1841 by the architect Alphonse Delacroix in the place of the old porch.
Synagog : set up in 1869 by Marnotte, surprising by its Moorish architecture.
Basilica Saint-Ferjeux : of style romano - Byzantine built on the cave of the patron saint of Besancon Holy Ferjeux and Holy Ironwood. Vault of the Refuge : built 1739 with 1745 by the resident of Besancon Nicolas Nicole. She was formerly the vault of the Convent of the Refuge before being attached to the Saint-Jacob hospital in 1802.
Abbey Saint-Paul : church of the old abbey founded by Saint-Donat, archbishop of Besancon towards 628. Rebuilt at the 14th century and 15th century, it has a beautiful Gothic vessel.
Great Seminar : built 1670 with 1695 by the archbishop Antoine-Pierre Ier de Grammont and supplemented at the 18th century by the rise in the gate and the construction of a beautiful main building in frontage. The vault presents on the street an elegant frontage on two floors of Corinthian pilasters. Its gate is surmounted by a tympanum where the Huguenin sculptor represented a Virgin with the Child in 1848.
Mosque Sounna : built at the end of the 20th century on a ground yielded by the city in the district of Saint-Claude.
Vault Our-Lady-of-Boxwood : vault of the 19th century dominating the city with 491 meters of altitude.

Environmental inheritance

With: 2408 hectares of green areas, of which: 2000 hectares of Forest S, Besancon is often recognized like the green city of France with its 204 m ² of green areas per capita. The Forêt of Chailluz represents with it only a quarter of the total surface area of the commune.
Closed Barbisier : garden created in 1988 in the district Leaf, it presents an important variety of pink.
Botanical garden of Besancon : the first Botanical garden of Besancon would have been created in 1580. It then occupied more than ten different sites, of which the current site of the Leclerc Place since 1957.
Gardens of the Casino : arranged public garden of flowered lawns and raised alleys.
Park of the Water Station: the arrival in 1833 of the Canal of the Rhone in the Rhine pushed the city to create a small port (water station) for the shipping but this one quickly becomes unutilised because of the boring of a channel under the citadel. The park of two hectares arranged around the basin is currently property of the general advice of the Doubs.
Park of the observatory : created in 1904 at the request of the director of the astronomical Observatory Auguste Lebeuf, it shelters in particular a Hêtre crimson, a whining beech, Châtaignier S and pine S.
Walk Chamars (4th quarter 18th century): its name comes from the contraction of Fields of Mars (campus martii). It was initially a separate marshy ground into two by an arm of the Doubs: the large one and small Chamars. Vauban, considering this place vulnerable, the fact of strengthening using ramparts and of Bastion S. the city obtains the permission to transform this space into walk in 1739, refitted by the Besancon-native architect Bertrand between 1770 and 1778 which incorporates a coffee in it, public baths, a birdcage of rare birds, cascades, a botanical garden and many plantations with the Frenchwoman. This one disappears mainly starting from 1830 with levelling from the interior rampart and creation from the station from water. A public garden is refitted there between 1978 and 1982, only the remaining elements of the old Chamars walk being the two houses of guard, some Platane S and the vases of stone of the sculptor Jean-Baptiste Boutry.
Walk of Glacis : created in the middle of the 19th century, it is the work of the Paysagiste Michel Brice and the Boutterin architect.
Walk Helvétie : one finds there a botanical garden called Jardin of the Directions and Scents realized in 1987 accessible to the partially-sighted persons thanks to his plants and shrubs presenting certain sensory characteristics (odor, touch) and to his descriptive panels in Braille.
Walk Micaud : it was arranged gradually on three hectares of Right Bank of the Doubs starting from 1843, on plans of the architect Alphonse Delacroix. It bears the name of Jules Micaud, mayor at the origin of this realization. It gathers more than 400 trees of which a magniolia with large flowers and a beech with lacinié foliage, a bandstand, a basin and several sculptures.
Walk Granvelle : old private garden of the Palate Granvelle dating from the 16th century, the municipality became purchaser in from there 1712 and it was opened with the public as of 1728. The Bertrand architect refits it in pleasure garden of 1775 with 1778, at this point in time it becomes the Promenade Granvelle . One finds there in particular a Kiosque with music, a artificial Grotte, a Fontaine Wallace, Statue S of Victor Hugo and Auguste Veil-Picardy, the gate of the church of the convent of the Large-Carmelite friars, and a neo-classic colonnade, vestige of a house of cooling.
Fountains : the city has many fountains, in particular because of its past of Thermal spa. Here is a nonexhaustive list: fountain of the Carmelite friars, Clarisses, the Ladies, Doubs, of Saint-Quentin, Billecul, Bacchus, Marulaz, Minotaure, of Jupiter, Victor Hugo, of the place of the Revolution, the Town hall, the Saint-Pierre place.
Forest of Chailluz : the city is owner of this Forêt of: 1625 hectares primarily made up of Feuillu S. One finds there a animalist park and a course health in addition to the many paths.

Places of culture

Besancon proposes an important cultural offer, being in particular the only town of this size to have five museums. The theaters are also numerous and their complementary programming. The weak point of the city lies in the lack of concert halls which should be partly filled with the opening of a Scene of Current musics (SMAC) in 2008. The offer of cinema is satisfactory with a total of 21 rooms. A Quoted of Arts and Culture must leave ground mid- 2008 for a delivery envisaged in 2010 - 2011: work of the Japanese architect Kengo Kuma, this one will integrate the Funds Regional of Contemporary art (FRAC) and the National Academy of Area (CNR) into the site of the old river port.

Museums
One counts five museums in Besancon. Oldest is the museum of the Art schools and Archeology which was the first museum created in France in 1694, nearly one century before Louvre. Occupying today an old market with the grains of 1835, it was refitted in the years 1960 per Louis Miquel, raises Le Corbusier. In the enclosure of the Palate Granvelle, the old museum of History of the City left room to a museum of Time inaugurated in June 2002 of which the concept is single in Europe and who gathers collections of Horlogerie (watches, sundials, Sablier S, together of the means of measurement of time…) and funds of the museum of History (tables, engravings).
One finds in addition three museums gathered in the citadel Vauban: a museum of Resistance and Deportation open since 1971 in the building of the Juniors, being composed of 22 rooms recalling the topics related to the Second world war (Nazisme, war, Régime of Vichy, Résistance, Libération, deportation) through original photographs, texts, documents and works carried out in concentration camps; the museum Comtois , installed in 1961 in the Royal Face, presents arts and regional traditions through sixteen permanent showrooms decorated of the collections more cash: 20000 objects, mainly of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th century; finally, the natural history museum of Natural history created 1959 under the impulse of the mayor Jean Minjoz who breaks up into four sectors (Zoological gardens, Insectarium, noctarium, Aquarium) and present of the varied collections of insects, fish, birds and mammals. A climatorium and important collections of natural science (naturalized animals, herbaria…) are also found there.

Theaters, theaters and in concerts
Large Kursaal : Kursaal was born from the will to propose animations and spectacles with the curists of the thermal spa of Besancon-the-Baths created in 1891 and with the soldiers in garrison in the city. The Kursaal-Circus opens its doors in the end of the year 1893 but finances of the promoter, widowed Madam Pellegrin, do not enable him to refund the committed expenses. The city becomes purchaser in from there 1895 and Kursaal then becomes the village hall of the city. It closes in 1970 for reasons of outdatedness, before being renovated starting from 1979 then reopened in September 1982. A conference room, called Petit Kursaal was also created in basement. The room principal, known as of the Grand Kursaal presents two balconies and a ceiling in cupola decorated with very beautiful Fresque S evoking arts of the Cirque. Its capacity can go up to 1038 sitted places including 450 to the two balconies. The Petit Kursaal is a conference room of 360 places.
Theater Bacchus : located in the district Midsummer's Day, this small theater of a capacity of approximately 100 places proposes plays and concerts.
Small theater of Bouloie : located on the campus, this theater of a capacity of 150 places accommodates student projects in order to support the artistic and cultural practice (university theater, university choral society…), of the artistic residences of young companies, of the professional spectacles proposed by the structures partners and of the spectacles of young companies.
Theater of Space : small national scene created in 1982, it is established in the district of Planoise. It privileges the disciplines of the dance and the movement, the visual theater, the circus, the forms transdisciplinaires and the cinema.
Theater Alcyon : company installed since 1995 in the Fort of Chaudanne where are organized spectacles, workshops and training courses of theater, dances and music.
Opera Theater : installed in the municipal theater of Ledoux.
New Theater : National Dramatic center.
FJT the Birds : of a capacity of 200 sitted places or 700 places upright, this room of the Worker Youth hostel accommodates concerts, exposures, dances and projections of the film club.
Cirque Plucks : emblematic company of the New Circus created in Besancon in 1984 and supported by the municipality since many years. In 2007, a permanent structure making it possible to the artists to prepare the new spectacles is in project in the city.
the Cylinder : located in common the peripheral of Larnod, it is one of the principal scenes in concert of the agglomeration.
SMAC : the new Scene of Current musics must leave ground in the zone Near-of-Are worth fine 2007 to be operational from here in Christmas 2008. It will comprise a big room of 800 places and a room " club" of 300 places. This one must come to fill the lack created by the closing of the room of Montjoie in 1998.
Exhibition site Micropolis : it shelters a flexible room with a capacity of reception of: 2200 with: 6500 places, where the majority of the artists and groups in national and international round occur.

Cinemas

The cinematographic offer of the Besancon-native agglomeration important and is diversified. It is equipped with two Multiplexe S: the Cinema Market-Beautiful-Arts (8 rooms), open in November 2003, is located in the historical center whereas the Mégarama (10 rooms) is established in periphery since December 1999. Those replaced with the beginning of the year the 2000 two traditional cinemas of the downtown area which were the Vox and the Plazza Lumière . The offer is supplemented by three cinemas of Art and Essai, the Plazza Victor-Hugo (3 rooms), the Cinéma Kursaal (1 room) and the Espace Planoise (1 room).

Besancon in the literature
Besancon, from its last rich person and the big number of men of letters which she saw being born, is quoted in many works. Thus, Jules César gives a description of the old ancient city Vesontio in its Commentaires on the War of Gaules : " Doubs surrounds almost the whole city of a circle which one would say traced to the compass; " .
Victor Hugo evokes as for him his birthplace in the first poem of the collection the Sheets of autumn entitled This century was two years old : " Then in Besancon Spanish old city/Thrown as a seed with the liking of the air which flies/Naquit from a Breton and Lorraine blood at the same time/a child without color, without glance and voix." . Also, part of the action of the novel of Stendhal the Red and the Black proceeds in Besancon where the main character Julien Sorel enters to the seminar: " Besancon is not only one of the prettiest towns of France, it abounds in people of heart and spirit. But Julien was only one small farmer and did not have any means of approaching the men distingués." .
Among the other important authors who evoked Besancon in their literary works, one can quote Charles Nodier ( picturesque and romantic Voyages in old France , the Puppets ), Honore de Balzac ( Albert Savarus ), Huguette Bouchardeau ( the Large Canopy ), Alexandre Dumas ( Twenty Years after ), Charles Exbrayat ( You would not have had, Marguerite ), Colette ( My trainings )…

Famous residents of Besancon

See also: Personalities related to Besancon

A big number of personalities was born in Besancon: among the most re-elected, one finds men of letters such as Victor Hugo, Pierre Joseph Proudhon, Charles Fourier and Charles Nodier, the inventors of the cinematograph who are the Frères Light, the type-setter Claude Goudimel or the racing cyclist Jean de Gribaldy…

Gastronomy

The Gastronomie of Besancon benefits from all the richnesses of the Franche-Comté, area cattle-rearing Bovin, production Lait ière and Fromage S, of Salaison S fume of the Haut-Doubs and the the High-Jura, of clear water of the Torrent S, Rivière S and Lac S, of Forêt S with Champignon S, of Gibier, and Jurassic wine production…
Some examples of regional products:

Cheese S: county, morbier, Mount of Gold, Cream cheese, Scraper, Edel de Cléron…

Molten S: with the county, with the Gold Mount, the Cream cheese, Macvin…

Pork-butchery S: Sausage of Morteau, Sausage of Montbeliard, dried meat Brési, Ham of Luxeuil…

Flat typical: Tart in the county, Trout au bleu, Trout with the yellow wine, Poulard with the morels, Crust with the morels, Coq au vin Yellow, Chicken in Comtoise, Chicken with the cream cheese, Potful comtoise, veal escalope comtoise…

Wine S and alcohol S: Wines of the Jura, yellow wine, Castle-Châlon, Wine of straw, the Star, Creaming of the Jura

Alcohol S: aperitif Pontarlier anise, Macvin…

To live in Besancon

Cultural events and festivities

February - Festival Génériq : organized jointly with Dijon, Mulhouse and Belfort, this festival created in 2007 explores the new musical tendencies such as the electro clubbing, the méditerranean surfing, the free metal, the éclectro blues, the alternative hip hop or the néo ghetto folk.

April - Festival Electro-Clicks : festival of electronic musics (techno, house, hip hop, trance, drum' Low, hardcore…) created in 2006.

May - the Grass in Zik : festival of music (pop-rock'n'roll, reggae, metal, French variety…) created in 2002 and which takes place during three days on the campus of Bouloie.

May - Fair Comtoise : exhibition which accommodates annually, around the weekend of Ascencion, nearly 400 exhibitors and: 140000 visitors. Each year, a country or a community is invited of honor and presents its craft industry like its habits and its traditions through spectacles. A fun fair supplements the offer of animations.

June - Jazz in Franche-Comté : jazz festival and of impromptu musics created in 1981.

July-August - Hot Times of the summer .

August - Franch Country Festival : festival of country music.

September - the Words Doubs : departmental living room of the book created in 2002.

September - Greedy Soils : market of the products of the soil.

September - Festival of music of Besancon Franche-Comté : it was created in 1948 and was supplemented in 1951 by the international Contest of young leaders, one of most prestigious of the discipline. The Festival proceeds every year during September while the international Contest of young leaders takes place every two years (odd years).

October - Musics of Streets: New Territory of Sound Arts : festival of musics of streets (bricophonists, new brass bands, bell ringers, enchanters of street, performers, musics of the world, installations sound, hunters of sounds…) whose first edition was held in 2006 and brewed more: 70000 visitors.

November - Lights of Africa , film festival African.

December - the cinema of the music , treating festival of various cinematographic works of the music.

December - Gone of Christmas .

Practical sporting

See also: Sport in Besancon

The practice of the sport in the Besancon-native agglomeration is diversified enough, on the one hand because the municipality does not wish all miser on one or two professional disciplines which would carry high the colors of the city but rather to encourage its population to practice all the disciplines, and on the other hand because the particular framework of the city (hills, cliffs, rivers) makes it possible to practice a broad panel of sports of outdoor such as the excursion, the VTT, the climbing, the canoe-kayak… The handball with the clubs of the Female Besancon-native Sporting Agreement and of the Male Besancon-native Sporting Agreement, the basketball with the Besancon Tennis shoe County Doubs and football (Besancon Racing Club), represents the collective sports headlights. In the field of the individual sports at the professional level, the city is distinguished in boxing, the fight with the Olympic medal Ghani Yalouz, the judo or the canoe-kayak.
The city is equipped with a Sport hall whose capacity is flexible, with: 4200 places in configuration tennis shoe and of: 3380 places in configuration handball. The Stade Léo-Lagrange is currently into full reorganization. One in addition finds a skating rink, two swimming pools covered and two swimming pools of outdoor, thirteen gymnasia, three sports complexes and six other stages.
Media
The press is represented mainly by the regional famous daily newspaper Is Republican and by two local newspapers, the Besancon-native Press and Hebdo of Besancon . In addition, the city shelters the local television broadcast station of France 3 Franche-Comté . In addition to the national radio stations, the city is covered by many local stations of which France Blue Besancon, Radio South, Radio Decibels or Radio Campus Besancon. The oldest local private radio of Besancon east Radio operator Beep . The city publishes a municipal monthly magazine, BVV ( Besancon Your City).
the network of media libraries :
Besancon has a wide-area network of media library accessible to the adults as with the children. Among those, one can quote:

the media library of the national academy of area of Besancon which has approximately 10.000 partitions of music, the books and the compact consultable discs on the spot.

the departmental media library of Montrapon open in 1989 place de Coubertin, which has more than 25.000 multimedia documents.

the media library Pierre Bayle in a building of the 18th century street of the Republic. It shelters an important sector youth as well as a space music.

the Jean Moulin media library-Library.

Others
The town of Besancon and Large Besancon launched in 2002 a step of sustainable development through two tools:

the Diary 21 for the town of Besancon.

the Charter of the environment for Large Besancon.

These programs gathering 150 actions lay down three objectives: to reduce the emissions of Gas to greenhouse effect; to preserve the natural resources and to develop the local resources; to act jointly.

Anecdotes

Besac (to pronounce /(bəzak)/ ) is the diminutive by which its inhabitants and more largely the inhabitants of Franche-Comté indicate the city. It is also the title of a song of the singer Guillaume Aldebert in homage to its town of adoption which appears in the album Plateau tele .

One confuses sometimes Besancon with Briançon (Hautes-Alpes) which makes it also part of the Réseau of the major sites of Vauban.

In the edition France of the board game Monopoly which must leave in March 2008, Besancon will occupy the place of the Boulevard Saint-Michel, thirteenth of the twenty-two boxes which compose the plate.

Honors and distinctions

The city is regularly distinguished by the national press for its social quality of life and its innovations economic and. Paradoxically, this one systematically underlines a certain deficit of notoriety of the city contrasting with its assets, joining expressions to him such " beautiful the endormie" , " to live happy, let us live cachés" , " the cocoon too douillet" . Here is a nonexhaustive list:

first price of the eAwards Europeans 2007 (trophies given by the European commission, to reward the best practices as regards electronic administration), in the category of the public services for social inclusion and more cohesion

Other visible distinctions on the document Besancon 2020 .

Twinnings

The town of Besancon signed agreements of Jumelage or co-operation with eleven foreign territorial collectivities. It gives its support for the local development of those of Africa and Eastern Europe. It supports also the exchanges by carrying out its own actions, and by allocating subsidies with associations and Besancon-native educational establishments which develop partnerships with their foreign counterparts. It connects economic, school and sporting structures, artists… Lastly, it brings its assistance in order to make it possible to the interested people to follow training courses abroad.

élargi with the District of Kirklees in 1995

draft-agreement of co-operation décentralisée

charte of friendship concluded in 1988

relations maintained since 1990

charte of co-operation going back to 1993

proclamation from amitié

Appendices

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