belvedere house

Belvedere was built around 1742 to a design by Richard Castle, probably as a fishing pavilion, for Robert Rochfort, Lord Belfield whose seat at Gaulston lay five miles away. Although its rooms are now empty, Belvedere remains much as it was in the Earl's time. A solid grey limestone house of two stories over a basement with a long front and curved end bows, it is probably the earliest bow-ended house in the country.

The delicate rococo plasterwork ceilings are the real glory of Belvedere's interior. Framed by rich cornices, these ceilings are notable for their lively quality and freedom of movement. The small park that Lord Belvedere created around his villa is just as fine as the house itself and was the envy of all visitors.

The view south is blocked by the remarkable Jealous Wall, the largest Gothic folly in Ireland. The fine rectangular seven-acre Walled Garden to the east of the house was built by Lieutenant Colonel Charles Howard-Bury who inherited the demesne in 1912.

Located 4 miles from Mullingar on the Tullamore Road. NGR: N 420477