centre mansion, flanked by colonnades leading to two service wings, in the true Palladian manner. Castletown was the first house in Ireland designed with this layout. The rigid symmetry of Castletown's classical façades, designed by Galilei was to be typical too of Pearce's later work. The interiors and final room plans are believed to be the work of Pearce, however the long suite of reception rooms along the ground-floor garden front, are not in the strict Palladian tradition. Such a mansion as Castletown, in Italy, would have been a town Palazzo rather than a country villa. The long suite of room with a central salon, terminating with smaller rooms at the end of the enfilade is more typical of the suites of state rooms in English country houses at the time. The central saloon at Castletown opens into the two-storey entrance hall, which is traversed by a corridor running the length of the mansion; the principal staircase is situated in an adjoining hall to the side of the great hall. In this layout of state rooms, hall and staircase Castletown is similar to Blenheim Palace, which Pearce had studied while a student of Vanbrugh. (While Pearce designed the staircase it was not actually constructed until 1760, some 28 years after his death.) Bellamont House Another of Pearce's earliest commissions occurred when he was commissioned by his mother's brother-in-law Thomas Coote to build Bellamont House, also known as Bellamont Forest, on the outskirts of Cootehill in the north-east of County Cavan. This family connection was not unusual, as several of Pearce's clients were related to him. Like Castletown, Bellamont claims to be Ireland's first Palladian house. Dates attributed to the design range from 1725–1730, whatever the date (1725 is probable) it is almost certain that this was the first of Ireland's many Palladian houses to be completed. The four bays square modestly sized mansion is clearly inspired by Palladio's Villa Capra. The principal façade has as its ground floor a rusticated semi-basement, above which is the piano nobile at the centre is a four columned portico with a pediment, the portico is flanked by a single high sash window on each side. The main entrance beneath the one-storey portico is reached by a single flight of broad steps. Above the piano nobile is a secondary floor with windows exactly half the size of those below. The entire façade is just four