Porte de la Blanquerie, Medieval city gate on Boulevard Louis Blanc, Montpellier, France
The Porte de la Blanquerie is a medieval city gate located at the intersection of Rue de l'Université and Boulevard Louis Blanc in Montpellier. The structure features solid masonry construction and maintains its original passageway, allowing visitors to pass through this historic boundary marker.
The Porte de la Blanquerie formed part of the twenty-five towers of the fortified wall that protected Montpellier in the late 12th and early 13th centuries. It survives alongside the Tour de la Babote, the Porte du Pila Saint Gély and the Tour des Pins. It was inscribed as a monument historique in 1938.
The gate is also known as the Vieille Porte, or Old Gate, a name that marks it as one of the last standing pieces of Montpellier's medieval wall. It survives alongside the Tour de la Babote, the Porte du Pila Saint Gély and the Tour des Pins, so the four are often read together as the city's remaining medieval defences.
The gate stands at the corner of Rue de l'Université and Boulevard Louis Blanc, on a paved street open to traffic, so it is seen from the pavement rather than entered. The archway is a single span with no barrier or gate; the narrow inscription panel is set into the left pier. Look up at the stepped keystone and the rusticated piers as you pass.
The gate is one of only four vestiges of Montpellier's medieval walls still standing, alongside the Tour de la Babote, the Porte du Pila Saint Gély and the Tour des Pins. It was listed as a monument historique in 1938. Look for the narrow vertical inscription panel set into the left pier, whose text is no longer legible.
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