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Besancon

Besançon is a French city, in the département of Doubs, of which it is the préfecture. Population (1999): 122,308.

Its Latin name was Vesontio.

The city's fortifications were upgraded by Vauban.

The city is famous for its microtechnology and watch industries.

Famous people born in Besançon include:

Victor Hugo (1802-1885) - Writer and poet
Tristan Bernard (1866-1947) - Journalist and Humorist
Hilaire de Chardonnet (1838-1924) - Inventor of artificial silk
Charles Fourier (1772-1837) - Inventor of socialist "phalansteries" (vast communal buildings surrounded by a highly cultivated agricultural area)
Claude Goudimel (1510-1572) - Musician, Teacher of Palestrina. Composer of the music for Protestant hymns
Antoine Perrenot de Granvelle (1517-1586) - Cardinal, statesman and humanist. Counsellor of Charles V, Viceroy of Naples
Auguste and Louis Lumiere, (1862-1954) and (1864-1948) - Inventors of cinematography
Charles Nodier (1780-1844) - Writer. Leader of the Romantic movement
Pierre-Joseph Proudhon (1809-1865)- Journalist (Le Peuple) and author of world-renowned socialist theories
Jean Claude Eugene Peclet, physicist, gave his name to the Péclet number
Louis-Jean Résal (1854-1920) - Engineer who built the Pont Mirabeau and the Pont Alexandre III in Paris

Referenced By

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Besancon".