The Free Imperial City of Besançon was a self-governing free imperial city that was part of the Holy Roman Empire. Its capital was Besançon. From 1184 until 1654 the city of Besançon was a free imperial city () as shown by the coat of arms until today and called Bisanz. The city was first separated from the governance of the County of Burgundy in 1034 as a prince-bishopric, an ecclesiastical state in the Holy Roman Empire. The city was governed by the Prince-Archbishopric of Besançon, although later most of his power would devolve to a council within the town. The free imperial city enclosed only the city of Besançon in the Franche-Comté so for a large part of the time it was controlled those who controlled access across the surrounding land, first by the dukes of Burgundy, and then by the Habsburgs. Finally, it lost its imperial status but remained a free city. History Gaining independence Besançon became part of the Holy Roman Empire in 1034, along with the rest of Franche-Comté. In 1184, the city became the Archbishopric of Besançon, gaining autonomy as an imperial free city under the Holy Roman Emperor. The archbishop of Besançon was elevated to prince of the Holy Roman Empire in 1288. Previous bishops, such as St Hugh I, had been referred to as princes of the Empire. The close connection to the Empire is reflected in the city's coat of arms. In 1290, after a century of fighting against the power of the archbishops, the emperor recognised Besançon's independence. In August 1336, the duke of Burgundy tried to take Besançon after a dispute with the clergy of Franche-Comté. The duke sent 9,000 soldiers who set up camp at Saint-Ferjeux, near Planoise. The duke abandoned the siege after a few months. The town fell into a number of disputes with its archbishop and sought the aid of a number of outside protectors, or captains, such as Philip the Good. In the fifteenth century, Besançon came under the influence of the dukes of Burgundy, although it never recognised their sovereignty. Habsburg control After the marriage of Mary of Burgundy to Maximilian I, Holy Roman Emperor in 1477, the city was in effect a Habsburg fief. In 1519, Charles V, King of Spain, became the Holy Roman Emperor. This made him master of Franche-Comté and Besançon, by then a francophone German city. Besançon treated the Habsburgs