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Besançon Cathedral () is a
Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...
church Church may refer to: Religion * Church (building), a place/building for Christian religious activities and praying * Church (congregation), a local congregation of a Christian denomination * Church service, a formalized period of Christian comm ...
dedicated to
Saint John Saint John or St. John usually refers to either John the Baptist or John the Apostle. Saint John or St. John may also refer to: People Saints * John the Baptist ( – ), preacher, ascetic, and baptizer of Jesus Christ * John the Evangelis ...
located in the city of
Besançon Besançon (, ; , ; archaic ; ) is the capital of the Departments of France, department of Doubs in the region of Bourgogne-Franche-Comté. The city is located in Eastern France, close to the Jura Mountains and the border with Switzerland. Capi ...
, France. It is the seat of the
Archbishop of Besançon In Christian denominations, an archbishop is a bishop of higher rank or office. In most cases, such as the Catholic Church, there are many archbishops who either have jurisdiction over an ecclesiastical province in addition to their own archdioc ...
. The
cathedral A cathedral is a church (building), church that contains the of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, Annual conferences within Methodism, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually s ...
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 Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of Roman civilization *Epistle to the Romans, shortened to Romans, a letter w ...
triumphal arch A triumphal arch is a free-standing monumental structure in the shape of an archway with one or more arched passageways, often designed to span a road, and usually standing alone, unconnected to other buildings. In its simplest form, a triumphal ...
of the 2nd century with extensive sculptural decoration.


History

Between 1127 and 1161 the cathedral was rebuilt on the foundation of a
basilica In Ancient Roman architecture, a basilica (Greek Basiliké) was a large public building with multiple functions that was typically built alongside the town's forum. The basilica was in the Latin West equivalent to a stoa in the Greek Eas ...
dating to the 9th century. However, in 1212, a fire destroyed its timber frame.''The Seven Marvels of Saint John's Cathedral'' In 1525
Erasmus Desiderius Erasmus Roterodamus ( ; ; 28 October c. 1466 – 12 July 1536), commonly known in English as Erasmus of Rotterdam or simply Erasmus, was a Dutch Christian humanist, Catholic priest and Catholic theology, theologian, educationalist ...
of Rotterdam visited Besançon at the invitation of
Ferry Carondelet Ferry Carondelet (also Ferricus Carondelet) (1473 – 27 June 1528) was a Habsburg diplomat, advisor to Margaret of Austria and abbot at Montbenoît. He was the younger brother of Jean Carondelet. Biography Ferry Carondelet was born in M ...
. Local notables tried to entice him to stay, offering him an allowance and a house, but Erasmus declined the offer. On 16 June 1683, King
Louis XIV of France LouisXIV (Louis-Dieudonné; 5 September 16381 September 1715), also known as Louis the Great () or the Sun King (), was King of France from 1643 until his death in 1715. His verified reign of 72 years and 110 days is the List of longest-reign ...
visited Besançon. He stayed at the Palais Granvelle, together with the Queen and the Dauphin, and visited the cathedral. In 1724 the bell tower collapsed. The apse of the Holy Shroud was built in its place in 1730. In the 1850s the cathedral received an
astronomical clock An astronomical clock, horologium, or orloj is a clock with special mechanisms and dials to display astronomical information, such as the relative positions of the Sun, Moon, zodiacal constellations, and sometimes major planets. Definition ...
that proved unsatisfactory. It was replaced by the present clock in 1860. In 1875 the cathedral was declared an
historic monument A monument is a type of structure that was explicitly created to commemorate a person or event, or which has become relevant to a social group as a part of their remembrance of historic times or cultural heritage, due to its artistic, historical ...
.


Features

To the left of the entrance is the tomb of Ferry Carondelet (1473-1528), a canon of Saint John and abbot of the abbey of
Saint Columbanus Saint Columbanus (; 543 – 23 November 615) was an Hiberno-Scottish mission, Irish missionary notable for founding a number of monastery, monasteries after 590 in the Franks, Frankish and Lombards, Lombard kingdoms, most notably Luxeuil Abbey ...
in
Montbenoît Montbenoît () is a former commune in the Doubs department in the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region in eastern France. It was merged into the new commune Pays-de-Montbenoît on 1 January 2025. Geography The commune lies north of Pontarlier in ...
. The grave was made in Flanders and the sculpture reflects influences from the Italian Renaissance. The eastern apse was rebuilt in 1730 on the site of the collapsed bell tower. It was decorated in the style associated with the period of
Louis XV of France Louis XV (15 February 1710 – 10 May 1774), known as Louis the Beloved (), was King of France from 1 September 1715 until his death in 1774. He succeeded his great-grandfather Louis XIV at the age of five. Until he reached maturity (then defi ...
, using stucco, marble, and gilded wood. The altar contained a copy of the
Shroud of Turin The Shroud of Turin (), also known as the Holy Shroud (), is a length of linen cloth that bears a faint image of the front and back of a naked man. Because details of the image are consistent with depiction of Jesus, traditional depictions o ...
; Besançon's shroud disappeared during the French Revolution. The apse contains paintings representing the passion and resurrection of Christ by
Charles-Joseph Natoire Charles-Joseph Natoire (3 March 1700 – 23 August 1777) was a French painter in the Rococo manner, a pupil of François Lemoyne and director of the French Academy in Rome, 1751–1775. Considered during his lifetime the equal of François Bou ...
,
Jean François de Troy Jean may refer to: People * Jean (female given name) * Jean (male given name) * Jean (surname) Fictional characters * Jean Grey, a Marvel Comics character * Jean Valjean, fictional character in novel ''Les Misérables'' and its adaptations * Je ...
, and
Charles-André van Loo Carle or Charles-André van Loo (; 15 February 1705 – 15 July 1765) was a French painter, son of the painter Louis-Abraham van Loo, a younger brother of Jean-Baptiste van Loo and grandson of Jacob van Loo. He was the most famous member of a s ...
. The floor of the apse is of marble and represents Jerusalem, together with the eight gates and four palaces mentioned respectively in the Old and
New Testament The New Testament (NT) is the second division of the Christian biblical canon. It discusses the teachings and person of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus, as well as events relating to Christianity in the 1st century, first-century Christianit ...
s. The paintings by de Troy are ''The Martyrdom of Saint Stephen'', ''Christ in the Garden of Olives'', and ''Christ carrying the Cross''. The paintings by Natoire are ''The removal of Christ's body from the cross'' and ''The placement of Christ's body in the tomb''. The van Loo painting is ''The resurrection of Christ''. The clock tower contains a notable
astronomical clock An astronomical clock, horologium, or orloj is a clock with special mechanisms and dials to display astronomical information, such as the relative positions of the Sun, Moon, zodiacal constellations, and sometimes major planets. Definition ...
with thousands of moving parts and several animated functions. There are several chapels off the nave on the north side. The first chapel was rebuilt in 1328 by John of Cicon in honor of St. Peter. In 1914, the chapel was dedicated to Saint Joseph. It holds a marble, eight-lobed, circular altar table known as the ''Rose of Saint John''; it is a little over one meter in diameter. Pope Leon IX consecrated the altar in 1050, at which time it stood in
St. Stephen's Cathedral, Besançon St. Stephen's Cathedral () 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 AD and the fifth century. Betwee ...
, which used to stand where part of the fortifications of the
Citadel of Besançon The Citadel of 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 on Mount Saint-Etienne, one of the ...
now stand. In 1711 it was placed on the cathedral's great altar. Then in 1790 it was built into the wall of the apse. On 6 January 1898 it was moved to the baptistry chapel. The Eucharist Chapel contains the painting of ''Our Lady of the Jacobins'', that
Domenico Passignano Domenico Passignano (1559 – 17 May 1638), born Domenico Cresti or Crespi, was an Italian painter of a late-Renaissance or Counter-''Maniera'' ( Counter-Mannerism) style that emerged in Florence towards the end of the 16th century. Biography ...
(Domenico Cresti) painted in 1630. The next chapel dates to the second half of the 13th century, but received Gothic embellishments in the 17th century. It contains an unfinished
alabaster Alabaster is a mineral and a soft Rock (geology), rock used for carvings and as a source of plaster powder. Archaeologists, geologists, and the stone industry have different definitions for the word ''alabaster''. In archaeology, the term ''alab ...
Pietà The Pietà (; meaning "pity", "compassion") is a subject in Christian art depicting the Mary (mother of Jesus), Blessed Virgin Mary cradling the mortal body of Jesus Christ after his Descent from the Cross. It is most often found in sculpture. ...
, the ''Virgin of Pity'', by
Conrad Meit Conrad Meit or (usual in German) Conrat Meit (1480s in Worms; 1550/1551 in Antwerp) was a German-born Late Gothic and Renaissance sculptor, who spent most of his career in the Low Countries. The royal tombs that were his largest works still ha ...
. He produced it in 1532 at the request of Margaret of Austria's chaplain, the Abbot Antoine de Montécut. The abbey of Saint Vincent de Besançon received it from the abbot and originally displayed it in a small chapel dedicated to
Our Lady of Sorrows Our Lady of Sorrows (), Our Lady of Dolours, the Sorrowful Mother or Mother of Sorrows (), and Our Lady of Piety, Our Lady of the Seven Sorrows or Our Lady of the Seven Dolours are Titles of Mary, names by which Mary, mother of Jesus, is referr ...
. The pulpit dates to 1459. The western apse has two levels. The first level has seven Romanesque windows. The second has seven Gothic bays. Lastly, near the organ, there is the painting ''Madonna in Glory with Saints'', which
Fra Bartolomeo Fra Bartolomeo or Bartolommeo (, , ; 28 March 1472 – 31 October 1517), also known as Bartolommeo di Pagholo, Bartolommeo di San Marco, Bartolomeo di Paolo di Jacopo del Fattorino, and his original nickname Baccio della Porta, was an Ital ...
painted in Florence in 1512 as an altarpiece for the cathedral.


Burials

*
William I, Count of Burgundy William I (1020 – 12 November 1087), called the Great (''le Grand'' or ''Tête Hardie'', "the Stubborn"), was Count of Burgundy from 1057 to 1087 and Mâcon from 1078 to 1087. He was a son of Reginald I, Count of Burgundy and Alice of Normandy ...
*
Nicholas Perrenot de Granvelle Nicolas Perrenot de Granvelle (1486–1550) was a Burgundian politician who served as a close trusted adviser to Emperor Charles V. He was made suzerain of the imperial city of Besançon and held an influential position in the Netherlands. From ...
(1484—1550) *
Antoine Perrenot de Granvelle Antoine Perrenot de Granvelle (20 August 151721 September 1586), Comte de La Baume Saint Amour, typically known as Cardinal Granvelle in English, was a Burgundian statesman, made a cardinal, who followed his father as a leading minister of th ...
*
Louis William Valentine Dubourg Louis William Valentine DuBourg (; 10 January 1766 – 12 December 1833) was a French Catholic prelate and Sulpician missionary to the United States. He built up the church in the vast new Louisiana Territory as the Bishop of Louisiana and ...
* Charles Binet


In fiction

Chapter 28, "A Procession," in
Stendhal Marie-Henri Beyle (; 23 January 1783 – 23 March 1842), better known by his pen name Stendhal (, , ), was a French writer. Best known for the novels ''Le Rouge et le Noir'' ('' The Red and the Black'', 1830) and ''La Chartreuse de Parme'' ('' T ...
's novel ''Le Rouge et le Noir'' (''
The Red and the Black ''Le Rouge et le Noir'' (; meaning ''The Red and the Black'') is a psychological novel in two volumes by Stendhal, published in 1830. It chronicles the attempts of a provincial young man to rise socially beyond his modest upbringing through a c ...
'', 1830) takes place in Besançon Cathedral and includes a description of the cathedral decorations for the Feast of Corpus Christi.


See also

*
Paintings in the Besançon Cathedral Painting is a visual art, which is characterized by the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a solid surface (called "matrix" or "support"). The medium is commonly applied to the base with a brush. Other implements, s ...
*
St. Stephen's Cathedral, Besançon St. Stephen's Cathedral () 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 AD and the fifth century. Betwee ...


Citations and references

Citations References
The Seven Marvels of Saint John's Cathedral


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Besancon Cathedral Roman Catholic cathedrals in France Roman Catholic churches in Besançon Basilica churches in France Churches in Doubs Tourist attractions in Besançon Monuments of the Centre des monuments nationaux