Archdiocese of Besançon

It was once believed in the Diocese of Besançon that Christianity was introduced to the area around 54 AD by Linus, one of Jesus Christ’s seventy-two disciples and the immediate successor of Peter the Apostle (d. 65), and that Linus served as the first bishop of Besançon. Although this myth has long been abandoned, Linus is still included in the episcopal lists after Ferreolus to preserve tradition. Another local tradition states that the diocese was evangelized by Saints Ferreolus and Ferrutio (Ferréol and Ferjeux), who were sent here by St. Irenaeus, Bishop of Lyon. According to the Catholic encyclopedia, "Louis Duchesne proved that these legends belong to a chain of narratives forged in the first half of the 6th century and of which the "passion" of St. Benignus of Dijon was the initial link." The Emperor Charles the Bald visited Besançon in 871. He granted the archbishops the right to coin money. During the Middle Ages several popes visited Besançon, among them Pope Leo IX who consecrated the altar of the old Cathedral of St. Etienne in 1050, and Eugenius III who in 1148 consecrated the church of St. Jean, the new cathedral. In a bull confirming the rights, privileges, and property of the archbishops of Besançon, dated 19 November 1049, Pope Leo IX mentions that the archbishops had a mint (moneta). Emperor vs. popes In 1156, Frederick Barbarossa married Beatrix, the daughter and heiress of Renaud III, the last of the hereditary counts of Burgundy. His chancellor of Burgundy was the bishop of Lausanne. In October 1157, Frederick returned to Besançon, and had himself crowned King of Burgundy and of Arles. The day after the coronation, a meeting was held between Frederick and the papal legates of Pope Adrian IV, Cardinal Bernard of San Clemente and Cardinal Roland of San Marco, the chancellor of the Holy Roman Church. In a letter read before the emperor's court, Pope Adrian reminded Frederick that he had crowned him in Rome and therefore considered the emperor his vassal—a message echoed in the cardinals' opening speech. This caused great offense, prompting Frederick to forbid the Archbishop of Besançon and other clerics from communicating with the pope. From that point forward, ecclesiastical investiture would be carried out by the emperor. On 18 November, after the meeting with the legates of the pope, Frederick named Archbishop Heraclius of Lyon his exarch. Pope Adrian died on 1 September 1159, and the election to choose his successor resulted in two parties and two popes, Alexander III and Antipope Victor IV. Frederick supported the interest of the Victor IV, and summoned a council to meet at Pavia, on 5–11 February 1160, to judge between the two claimants. Archbishop Humbert of Besançon (1134–1162) sent a representative, but subsequently he received no favor or attention from the emperor. The Cistercians in the diocese, who sent representatives to the General Chapter at Citeux in 1161, declared firmly in favor of Pope Alexander III, which brought down the wrath of Frederick on the entire order. The monasteries of Acey, Bellevaux, and Clairefontaine were turned over for pillage. Archbishop Humbert resigned in 1162, and retired to a monastery, where he died in 1164. He was succeeded by Gauthier, the son of Duke Hugues of Burgundy, the archdeacon and dean of the Chapter, but it is not known whether Gauthier ever received confirmation from the pope. In place of Humbert, Frederick installed as archbishop Herbert, a German from Cologne, the Provost of the Chapter of Aix-la-chapelle (Aachen). In 1166, however, Herbert was still subscribing documents with the title archbishop-elect, and the title of archbishop does not appear until 1168. He died in 1172, and his funeral was attended neither by the people nor the clergy of Besançcon. His successor Eberhard (1172–1180) was also a supporter of Frederick and a schismatic, until Frederick brought the schism to an end by reconciling with Pope Alexander in July 1177, from which point Eberhard was recognized as archbishop of Besançon. The son of Count Guillaume of Burgundy, Guido of Burgundy, who was pope from 1119 to 1123 under the name of Calixtus II, was born at Quingey, 23 km southwest of Besançon. Chapter and cathedral Legend says that the founder of Saint-Étienne was Linus, who lived in the mid-1st century or the late 2nd. Christianity, however, was an illegal unregistered cult until the Edict of Milan, which makes construction unlikely. The same source reports the rebuilding of the church by "Queen Helena", the mother of Constantine, under bishop Hylarius. The cathedral of Saint Stephen (Saint-Étienne) was in complete ruins when rebuilding began under Archbishop Gauthier (1016–1030). It was completed by Archbishop Hugues de Besançon (1031–1067) and dedicated on 3 October 1048 by Pope Leo IX. Pope Innocent IV (1243–1254) granted indulgences to contributors to the restoration of Saint-Étienne. It was at the same time that construction began on a new cathedral, Saint-Jean, in a more modern style. It was consecrated by Pope Eugenius III on 5 May 1148. On 6 March 1350, lightning struck Saint-Étienne, and destroyed the roof, the furnishings, and its ornaments. The building was repaired, but it was finally pulled down by the military architect Vauban, on orders of King Louis XIV, between 1674 and 1678, to make way for the citadel of Besançcon. For a time, Besançon had two cathedrals, Saint Stephen and Saint John the Evangelist. The cathedral was served and administered by a corporation called the Chapter. It consisted of 43 canons, four dignities, and seven lesser dignities (adjutores). The dignities were: the Dean, who presided over the Chapter, the grand archdeacon, the Cantor, the Treasurer, the archdeacon Salinarius, the archdeacon Faverniacensis, the archdeacon Graacenus, the archdeacon Luxoviensis, and the Theologus. In 1698, there were four dignities, four personae (adjutores), and 45 canons. ==Later history==