En un regard
Le château en bref
In Vertus, a delegated commune of Blancs-Coteaux at the foot of the Côte des Blancs, the Porte Baudet is the only surviving trace of the walls that once protected this small Champagne town. Sources differ on the origins of the fortification: the DREAL Grand Est refers to a fortified town as early as 1080, while the local heritage trail dates the construction of the ramparts from 1230 onwards, with the consent of Count Theobald IV of Champagne, during the prosperous era of the Champagne fairs. Built of Falloises stone, the gate was a double gateway flanked by two towers and fitted with a portcullis and a drawbridge; it guarded the entrance from the Épernay road. The town walls were demolished in the 18th and 19th centuries, and their line can still be traced in the tree-lined boulevards encircling the centre. The Porte Baudet and the nearby Saint-Martin well are protected as sites, since 1931 and 1958 respectively, and both feature on the town's signposted heritage trail.