Ville close de Bellême, Medieval fortified walls in Bellême, France.

The Ville close de Bellême is the walled old town of Bellême, whose fortifications were begun in 1027 with the castle by Guillaume Ier Talvas. Of the enclosure there remain the Porte Saint-Sauveur, a pointed arch opened between two towers and restored in 1417 by the Earl of Warwick, the octagonal Clock Tower from the 13th century, and stretches of rampart built into houses, fronted by ditches. The arch is of light grey rectangular stone blocks, with a wrought-iron balcony railing above it, a black lantern hanging inside and a small wooden mailbox at its base.

The fortifications were raised in 1027 together with the castle by Guillaume Ier Talvas, enclosing the medieval town of Bellême in the Orne. The Saint-Sauveur gate, the town entrance in the 15th century, was restored by the Earl of Warwick in 1417. Its military structures were built between the 12th and 14th centuries, before it became a salt granary in the modern era.

The Saint-Sauveur gate, a pointed arch between two towers, became the town's salt store from 1582: the south tower held two granaries above a ground-floor sales room, keeping salt from the population. Salt has since eaten into the stone, and the gate is a threatened monument. The Clock Tower, a 13th-century polygon, is inscribed as a historic monument by decree of 17 January 1989.

The remains stand within the closed town of Bellême, in the Orne. The Saint-Sauveur gate opens between two towers onto the street; the octagonal Clock Tower and stretches of rampart set into houses can be seen on foot. The gate is partly listed as a monument historique since 19 May 1937, and the salt has damaged its stone.

The Saint-Sauveur gate became the town's salt granary in the modern era: in 1582 its south tower was turned into a salt store with two granaries above, and the old guardroom became a fortified sales room on the ground floor. Salt has since eaten into the stone, and the porch is a threatened monument.