Sister Revolutions III: Liberty, Equality, Fraternity (1776–1848)

How did the provincial military town of Besançon experience the French Revolution? University of Virginia historian Benjamin Bernard and producer Sage Tanguay consider the transition from monarchy to democracy in a city that produced many of France’s leading social thinkers of the early nineteenth century. This episode features discussions with French and American doctoral students and historians--as well as an extended interview with Léonel de Moustier, a descendant of François-Elie de Moustier, who was the French ambassador to America during the French Revolution.

Sister Revolutions is a limited-run documentary series made possible by the Charlottesville Sister Cities Commission, Brown Residential College at the University of Virginia, and America 2026. You can learn more about each of these organizations on their websites: www.cvillesistercities.org, https://browncollege.virginia.edu/ and www.america2026.eu

• Sister Revolutions is produced and hosted by Benjamin Bernard and Sage Tanguay
• Production assistance from Sophia Moore and Ben Larsen
• French Transcription and Translation by Oriane Guiziou-Lamour
• English voiceover by Nathan Moore, Tracey Gerlach, Russ Perry, and Dan Hennicke

The music in this episode was provided by Blue Dot Sessions and by violinist Daniel Sender, Charlottesville Sister Cities grantee performing music by Michel Blavet (1700-1768).

This episode featured the voices of:

• Leïla Tnaïnchi
• Oriane Guiziou-Lamour
• André Ferrer from the Société d’émulation du Doubs and Professor Emeritus at the University of Burgundy Franche-Comté
• Gaëlle Cavalli from the Citadelle of Besançon
• Lionel Estavoyer
• Léonel de Moustier
• Amandine Royer

Special thanks to

• Elizabeth Smiley of the Charlottesville Sister Cities Commission
• Gaspard de Moustier
• Bertrand Van Ruymbeke of America 2026
• Prof. Ari Blatt, Chair of the University of Virginia French Department
• Florent Werguet, Head of international relations for the City of Besançon
• Hugo Toudic Associate director of the University of Chicago center in Paris

Sister Revolutions is hosted by Symposia: a production of Brown Residential College at the University of Virginia and the Virginia Audio Collective at WTJU 91.1 FM.