Place · city

Besançon

Also known as Vesontio

Besançon is a city on the Doubs in eastern France, the historic capital of Franche-Comté. As Vesontio it was the chief oppidum of the Sequani, which Julius Caesar seized in 58 BCE, and later the capital of the province of Maxima Sequanorum. Its citadel, rebuilt by Vauban in the 17th century, is a World Heritage Site.

Besançon
Image: Wikipedro · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Mentioned in 2 state histories

SequaniImperial City of Besançon

See also

Cite this entry
APA
The Epoch Institute. (2026). Besançon. In The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia. https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/besancon
MLA
“Besançon.” The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia, The Epoch Institute, 2026, https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/besancon. Accessed .
Chicago
The Epoch Institute. “Besançon.” The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia. 2026. https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/besancon.
Harvard
The Epoch Institute (2026) ‘Besançon’, The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia. Available at: https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/besancon (Accessed: ).

Last reviewed October 2026Random entry ↻