Besançon
Besançon is a city in France. It was the capital of the former Free County (Franche-Comté) region. It is the prefecture of the Doubs department. Its population is around 117,600 (2008).
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Besançon | ||
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Motto: Plût A Dieu ("If God wills") or Utinam | ||
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| The old city of Besançon in the oxbow of the Doubs River. | ||
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| Administration | ||
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| Country | France | |
| Region | Free County | |
| Department | Doubs | |
| Intercommunality | Grand Besançon | |
| Mayor | Jean-Louis Fousseret (PS) (2014–2020) | |
| Statistics | ||
| Land area1 | 65.05 km2 (25.12 sq mi) | |
| Population2 | 117,599 (2008) | |
| - Ranking | 29th in France | |
| - Density | 1,808/km2 (4,680/sq mi) | |
| Urban area | 122 km2 (47 sq mi) (1999) | |
| - Population | 134,376 (1999) | |
| Metro area | 1,652 km2 (638 sq mi) (1999) | |
| - Population | 222,381 (1999) | |
| Website | http://www.besancon.fr/ | |
| 1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km² (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries. | ||
| 2 Population without double counting: residents of multiple communes (e.g., students and military personnel) only counted once. | ||
History
Besançon is an old city. It is discovered in 58 BC and Julius Caesar writes about it in his book Commentarii de Bello Gallico where it is called Vesontio. The etymology (origin of the word) is not certain. It could have a Celtic origin. The Celtic word wes means mountain. In the 4th century, the letter B became V. The city name changed to Besontio or Bisontion. It became Besançon in 1243. In 1871 the city is going through a revolutionary period, known as Besançon Commune.
The city has a Renaissance citadel. It was later used by the Nazis during World War II.
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Climate
Besançon has an oceanic climate and a continental climate. The average temperature is 10.2 °C (50 °F). The warmest month of the year is July (18.9 °C or 66 °F) and the coldest month is January (1.6 °C or 35 °F). Besançon receives about 1108 mm (44 inches) of precipitation per year. The wettest month is May (111.4 mm or 4.4 in); the driest is July (80.5 mm or 3.2 in). The highest temperature ever, recorded on 31 July 1983, was 38.8 °C (101.8 °F), and the lowest was a −20.7 °C (−5.3 °F) reached on 1 January 1985.
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
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| Avg temperature °C (°F) | 1.6 (35) | 3.3 (38) | 6.1 (43) | 9.4 (49) | 13.3 (56) | 16.5 (62) | 18.9 (66) | 18.3 (65) | 15.7 (60) | 11.3 (52) | 5.6 (42) | 2.1 (36) | 10.2 (50) |
| Avg rainfall mm (in) | 91.1 (3.6) | 81.8 (3.2) | 83.5 (3.3) | 91.6 (3.6) | 111.4 (4.4) | 100.1 (3.9) | 80.5 (3.2) | 86.9 (3.4) | 93.2 (3.7) | 85.8 (3.4) | 103.7 (4.1) | 99.0 (3.9) | 1108 (43.6) |
| Source: Météo France | |||||||||||||
Monuments
Éducation
Sister cities
Besançon is twinned with:
Tver, Russia
Freiburg im Breisgau, Germany
Kuopio, Finland
Huddersfield – Kirklees, United Kingdom
Bielsko-Biała, Poland
Neuchâtel, Switzerland
Bistriţa, Romania
Pavia, Italy
Hadera, Israel
Douroula, Burkina Faso
Man, Côte d'Ivoire
Charlottesville – Virginia, United States
Besançon Media
Reconstruction of the Gallic (pre-Roman) oppidum of Vesontio
Henry II, Holy Roman Emperor inherited the city and made it part of the Holy Roman Empire in 1032.
The Citadel of Besançon by Vauban
Site of Besançon (Landsat 7)
Besançon seen by Spot Satellite
Courtyard of the former city hall
Besancon map with districts numbers
La synagogue de Besançon depuis le quai Vauban.
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