Colonial military units composed of African Muslims were stationed in

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 ...

and the

Franche-Comté Franche-Comté (, ; ; Frainc-Comtou dialect, Frainc-Comtou: ''Fraintche-Comtè''; ; also ; ; all ) is a cultural and Provinces of France, historical region of eastern France. It is composed of the modern departments of France, departments of Doub ...

from the 1870s to

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

to augment the French army and protect its frontiers during its conflicts with Germany. Large-scale immigration of Muslims to France began in the 1960s and 1970s. In 1981, the Center of Islam of the Franche-Comté was created, as the sunna association was formed in 1987. In 2010, Islam was the second largest religion in Besançon after

Catholicism The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

. According to a report by France Bleu Besançon in 2010, Muslims live in Besançon and comprise about 13% of the city's population.Journal du 11 août 2010 de France Bleu Besançon, à propos du jeûne du Ramadan en France et à Besançon
(consulté le 13).

History

Colonial soldiers in Franche-Comté

After the

Franco-Prussian War The Franco-Prussian War or Franco-German War, often referred to in France as the War of 1870, was a conflict between the Second French Empire and the North German Confederation led by the Kingdom of Prussia. Lasting from 19 July 1870 to 28 Janua ...

and mostly in the beginning of the 20th century the French state enrolled many people of the

French colonial empire The French colonial empire () comprised the overseas Colony, colonies, protectorates, and League of Nations mandate, mandate territories that came under French rule from the 16th century onward. A distinction is generally made between the "Firs ...

, especially from

Maghreb The Maghreb (; ), also known as the Arab Maghreb () and Northwest Africa, is the western part of the Arab world. The region comprises western and central North Africa, including Algeria, Libya, Mauritania, Morocco, and Tunisia. The Maghreb al ...

for settle in border region (

Nord Nord, a word meaning "north" in several European languages, may refer to: Acronyms * National Organization for Rare Disorders, an American nonprofit organization * New Orleans Recreation Department, New Orleans, Louisiana, US Film and televisi ...

Alsace Alsace (, ; ) is a cultural region and a territorial collectivity in the Grand Est administrative region of northeastern France, on the west bank of the upper Rhine, next to Germany and Switzerland. In January 2021, it had a population of 1,9 ...

and

.Les coloniaux dans l’histoire militaire du nord-est de la France (1st partie) sur Migrations.Besançon.fr
(consulté le 31).). After the defeat of the

Second French Empire The Second French Empire, officially the French Empire, was the government of France from 1852 to 1870. It was established on 2 December 1852 by Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte, president of France under the French Second Republic, who proclaimed hi ...

front of the Germans kingdoms and

kingdom of Prussia The Kingdom of Prussia (, ) was a German state that existed from 1701 to 1918.Marriott, J. A. R., and Charles Grant Robertson. ''The Evolution of Prussia, the Making of an Empire''. Rev. ed. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1946. It played a signif ...

in 1871, the French government getting ready for revenge dice 1890 ; but the country have not got a great army, it's because the French state called many people from

nommed ''coloniaux''.Histoire des soldats coloniaux français sur Histoire-immigration.fr
(consulté le 31). ''La dépêche'' of January 2 of 1910, the newspaper of Besançon, have write an article about this ''coloniaux'' : "Since we do not want to have enough children to keep our flag in front of a Germany increasingly bloated, we have one resource, recruit soldiers among the primitive men who, under our rule, consent to be born and die. So, as soon as possible, we must organize the black and Arab troops to form an incomparable force of 200,000 trades. Yes, we must create the black army, the Arab army, supported by our decadence." The French state called again the ''coloniaux'' for

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. A commemorative plaque pays tribute for him in the center of Besançon : "In Memory of 14 000 Dead In Fighting the FIRST FRENCH ARMY - African Army (Army B) which, after fighting in Tunisia and Italy, will arrive in Provence with a portion of the American 6th Army Corps, release Toulon and Marseille, then arrive in record time in the Doubs, where the difficulty of supplying the detention of two months. General de Lattre de Tassigny in command of this unit makes your PC Besançon Lecourbe Street, the equation of volunteers from the Resistance (French Forces of the Interior), and African units. In the Doubs PC Montbéliard the Army (the Army called B) take the name of First French Army. On November 14, 1944, it is the offensive that will free the rest of the department of Doubs, Belfort and Alsace, then cross the Rhine and pursue the enemy into Austria. On May 8, 1945 its leader, General de Lattre de Tassigny sign on behalf of France's surrender in Berlin. The arms of Colmar became his badge, the two great rivers of the designation: Rhine and Danube.Le député de Besançon et l’armée indigène en 1915 sur le BVV de novembre 2006
(consulté le 1)." The city of Besançon have two Muslim cemeteries for the ''coloniaux'' deads during the world wars (one in the city and one at short distance) : the Muslims cemetery of Saint-Claude area (twenty tombs) and the military cemetery of Rougemont (2169 tombs). A statue named ''Les Sentinelles de la Mémoire'' (The Sentinels of Memory) was also created paying tribute to the foreigner deads for the France during the world wars.''Les Sentinelles de la Mémoire'' sur Besac.com
(consulté le 22).

Immigration to Besançon

Mosques and associations

Al-fath association exists since the 2000s (decade) in the French area of Planoise, located in

. This association was hosted in a

HLM An habitation à loyer modéré (HLM, , ), is a form of low-income housing in France, Algeria, Senegal, and Quebec. It may be public or private, with rent subsidies. HLMs constitute 16% of all housing in France.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 ...

for one symbolic euro, during 99 years. For finance the construction of the building, Al-Fath association appeal the gift at the Muslims of the area. In 2008, the association was reinstalled and the first imam (mister Dahmani) took function. The second mosque of Besançon was built at the end of the 1990s, and is called the Sunna mosque. It is located in Saint-Claude area and has a

minaret A minaret is a type of tower typically built into or adjacent to mosques. Minarets are generally used to project the Muslim call to prayer (''adhan'') from a muezzin, but they also served as landmarks and symbols of Islam's presence. They can h ...

. The city also has a cemetery for the Muslims.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Islam In Besancon Islam in France Religion in Besançon

History

Colonial soldiers in Franche-Comté

Immigration to Besançon

Mosques and associations

See also

References