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Besançon Cathedral

Basilica churches in FranceChurches in DoubsMonuments of the Centre des monuments nationauxRoman Catholic cathedrals in FranceRoman Catholic churches in Besançon
Tourist attractions in Besançon
Eglise Saint Jean Besançon
Eglise Saint Jean Besançon

Besançon Cathedral (French: Cathédrale Saint-Jean de Besançon) is a Roman Catholic church dedicated to Saint John located in the city of Besançon, France. It is the seat of the Archbishop of Besançon. The cathedral consists of a large nave between two aisles, and dates from the 11th to the 13th century. It has two facing apses, each with an altar. The lack of a transept and the facing apses parallel the designs of contemporary German cathedrals. The Romanesque arches date from the 13th century. It does not have a main doorway. The choir dates to the 18th century. The cathedral is situated near the base of Mont Saint-Étienne, below the citadel. To the east of the cathedral is the 16th-century Porte Rivotte, with two round towers, and pedestrian walkways dating to the 19th century. To the west is the Porte Noire, a Roman triumphal arch of the 2nd century with extensive sculptural decoration.

Excerpt from the Wikipedia article Besançon Cathedral (License: CC BY-SA 3.0, Authors, Images).

Besançon Cathedral
Rue du Chapitre, Besançon Citadelle

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Wikipedia: Besançon CathedralContinue reading on Wikipedia

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N 47.233611111111 ° E 6.0305555555556 °
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Cathédrale Saint-Jean

Rue du Chapitre
25000 Besançon, Citadelle
Bourgogne-Franche-Comté, France
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Eglise Saint Jean Besançon
Eglise Saint Jean Besançon
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St. Stephen's Cathedral, Besançon
St. Stephen's Cathedral, Besançon

St. Stephen's Cathedral (French: Cathédrale Saint-Étienne de Besançon) was a Roman Catholic church located in Besançon on the site of the current Citadel of Besançon in Franche-Comté, eastern France. The cathedral was thought to be constructed between 326 CE and the fifth century. Between the 12th and 13th centuries there was continuing friction between St. Stephen's Cathedral and St. John's Cathedral (French: Cathédrale Saint-Jean, the present Besançon Cathedral),which was believed to be a more recent foundation. Hugues de Salins, who redesigned St. John's, also led the reconstruction plans for St. Stephen's between 1033 and 1050. The two were intended to coexist, despite St. John's having more power in the elections of archbishops.In 1092 St. Stephen's complained that it had been stripped of its precedence, despite the archdiocese believing that it was the principal one of Besançon. In 1238 it was excommunicated due to its attacks against St. John's. Between 1253 and 1254, Archbishop Guillaume de la Tour unified the two chapters, a decision which was ratified by Pope Innocent IV on 1 August 1254.After the Battle of Besançon in 1575, masses were held at both cathedrals to celebrate the Catholic victory against the Protestants.From 1668 to 1675, St. Stephen's Cathedral was abandoned and it was later decided that it should be destroyed, along with some surrounding houses, to allow for the construction of the Citadel of Besançon, after Franche-Comté was given to Louis XIV of France in the Treaties of Nijmegen. However, it was then decided that the cathedral should remain, but it was stripped of its contents, and then destroyed in any case after an accidental fire, when construction of the citadel began. The present Besançon Cathedral currently contains 8 paintings that were copied from 15th-century frescos in the destroyed cathedral, and an eight-lobed marble altar now known as the Rose of Saint John.

Citadel of Besançon
Citadel of Besançon

The Citadel of Besançon (French: Citadelle de Besançon) is a 17th-century fortress in Franche-Comté, France. It is one of the finest masterpieces of military architecture designed by Sébastien Le Prestre de Vauban. The Citadel occupies 11 hectares (27 acres) on Mount Saint-Etienne, one of the seven hills that protect Besançon, the capital of Franche-Comté. Mount Saint-Etienne occupies the neck of an oxbow formed by the river Doubs, giving the site a strategic importance that Julius Caesar recognised as early as 58 BC. The Citadel overlooks the old quarter of the city, which is located within the oxbow, and has views of the city and its surroundings. The fortification is well preserved. Today it is an important tourist site (over a quarter of a million visitors per year) due both to its own characteristics and because it is the site of several museums. These museums include a museum of the Resistance and deportation, a museum focusing on traditional life in Franche-Comté and the region's archeological history, and a museum of natural history that includes a zoo, an insectarium, an aquarium, vivariums, a noctarium, a climatorium, a pedagogical exhibit on evolution, botanical gardens, and a children's farm. There is also a restaurant and shops. On 7 July 2008, UNESCO listed the Citadel, together with nearby Fort Griffon, as a World Heritage Site for its testimony to Vauban's work and its influence in the design of military fortifications and strategy from the 17th through 20th centuries. Since 1942, the French Ministry of Culture has listed the Citadel as a Monument historique.The citadel of Besançon is today the symbol of the city and a high place of tourism in Bourgogne-Franche-Comté, the third paying monument in the region in terms of attendance with 200,000 to 300,000 visitors each year.