Homeless migrants are causing ‘absolute misery’ by camping outside one of London’s most iconic homes which is owned by the billionaire Duke of Wellington.
Dozens of Eastern European and African migrants are living in tents on a tiny strip of greenery outside 250-year-old Grade I-listed Apsley House, which stands alone on the south east corner of Hyde Park.
It was built in the 1770s and is currently home to Charles Wellesley, 80, the current Duke of Wellington, who is a descendant of Queen Victoria.
But shocking photos show how a large group of homeless migrants have camped outside – including one brazenly appearing to urinate outside the main gate.
Others have run into trouble with the police.
The encampment is overlooked by the plush five-star Intercontinental Hotel, which charges up to £4,000-a-night, and the Wellington monument in Hyde Park.
Local workers complain migrants often openly urinate and defecate outside the house while others report theft.
When the Daily Mail visited a 23-year-old woman, believed to be a resident, was being arrested on suspicion of threats to kill other tent dwellers.
Officers also arrested two others on the site following a disturbance with one man, 48, in possession of a knife and a piece of glass and the other, a 33-year-old man, detained for fighting and making threats to kill.
There are around 12 tents outside the house. Asked how long they have lived there, a group of migrants claimed they did not speak English.
Locals say the first tents were pitched around a year ago but they keep growing and now reach around the corner of the street.
The row of tents back up against the wall of Apsley House while a child’s shoe could be seen hanging from one.
Tent strings are attached to the house’s rails while rubbish, alongside mattresses, drying racks, cushions and pillows, are strewn across the patch of grass.
One local business owner said: ‘They cause absolute misery. They just make such a beautiful area look terrible.
‘It’s such an absolutely beautiful house with so much history and heritage. But these groups make it look appalling.
‘It’s disgusting what they get up to.’
Another local said: ‘I have seen them urinate and defecate outside. It’s vile behaviour.
‘They make it look like a slum outside.’
A worker from a neighbouring hotel told the Daily Mail a group of migrants had tried to steal an ice machine during the summer.
‘Sometimes they used to go on to the terrace and one time they tried to take the machine,’ they said.
‘They are very rude and very aggressive. You try to deal with them in a good way but they don’t understand English.
‘The tents look horrible. I see police here but it is proving so difficult to remove them. If the police do nothing then what can we do?’
Another worker said: ‘It started with about three tents and then seven and then nine. Every month it keeps increasing.
‘There’s a lot of them and it will keep growing 100 per cent.’
The tiny patch of grass, right next to an entrance to Hyde Park Corner tube station, is owned by the Royal Parks but they told the Mail they have no power of enforcement to remove the migrants, laying the blame on the police.
‘The Met Police are aware of the issue and are the only authority with the powers to enforce the Regulations. The Royal Parks does not have any powers of enforcement and Westminster City Council cannot enforce the Park Regulations,’ they said.
Migrant camps have long blighted the capital’s swankiest neighbourhoods, with Mayfair and Park Lane shanty towns repeatedly reopening after being shut down.
The latest camp is just a road away from the prestigious Royal Aeronautical Society and the private members Les Ambassadeurs Club. It also neighbours Hyde Park’s hugely popular Winter Wonderland.
Shocked tourists snapped pictures of the encampment as they strolled through one of London’s most salubrious areas.
The owner of Apsley House, Charles Wellington, sits in the House of Lords and according to reports is worth around £1billion, due to his fortune and land and estates.
His daughter is Lady Charlotte Wellesley, one of the richest young women in Britain, worth over £3bn. She married financier Alejandro Santo Domingo.
The house is stunning and opens largely as a museum and art gallery which is run by England Heritage, with the Duke living in an apartment within a large private section.
The shanty town outside is just minutes away from the infamous Park Lane homeless camp, which was dismantled after seven years before reopening 400 yards down the road.
Tottenham Court Road has also been transformed as long lines of tents have sprung up housing homeless migrants.
Shocking footage taken by the Daily Mail shows a ramshackle ‘village’ of tents clustered along the central London street close to the University College Hospital complex which was recently subject to a prestigious rebuild costing over £200million.
In scenes more reminiscent of the infamous ‘Jungle’ in Calais than London, a long line of tents has been erected, often on wooden pallets to keep rain water out, over two large plots of private land.
The inhabitants are a mix of migrants from around the world, particularly the Middle East, as well as Romania and Bulgaria augmented by a handful of homeless Britons.
Most are men, with a small number of women – with many among their number understood to beg for spare change at pitches along the famous street.
Some more elaborate plots even had gazebos, tables, chairs and cooking equipment – while stacks of uneaten food showing packaging from Costa and Greggs were piled up nearby.
Another tent set up in the middle of the busy street even had a Deliveroo branded delivery bike parked outside – with its migrant resident apparently working dropping off takeaway meals before sleeping rough here.
Another secret ‘tent village’ housing 30 homeless people has also popped up behind the glistening lights of West End theatres and the Savoy Hotel.
In the shadow of the £800-a-night Adelphi, on London’s Strand, people from Britain and around the world are living in a street encampment.
The Grade II-listed building, home to publications including Vogue and GQ, creates a stark contrast with the series of tents and poverty outside.
Video taken by the Daily Mail shows about 20 tents on the pavement – many of which were placed tactically under a neo-classical archway.
There are migrants, men from Romania, Uganda, a woman from Germany and people from Scotland, northern England and the capital itself.
A spokesperson for English Heritage said it was ‘working with The Royal Parks and Westminster Council to find the best way to resolve the issue’ at Apsley House.
In a joint statement, The Royal Parks and Westminster City Council said: ‘We are aware of several tents on the land adjacent to Apsley House at Hyde Park Corner and are working in partnership to try and find a positive long-term solution to the issue.
‘The area where the tents are currently situated is managed by The Royal Parks charity and is therefore subject to the Royal Parks Regulations which state that camping in the parks is not permitted.
‘The Met Police are aware of the issue and are the only authority with the powers to enforce the Regulations. The Royal Parks does not have any powers of enforcement and Westminster City Council cannot enforce the Park Regulations.’
The Met have been approached for comment.
A Westminster Council spokesperson added: ‘We have more people experiencing rough sleeping than any other part of the country – as the heart of the capital, new people appear on our streets every day
‘Our teams are out on the streets seven days a week to offer help to those who will take it. People end up on the streets for complex reasons, but staying there isn’t an option.
‘Everyone wants to see a safe, long-term resolution to issues at this site and we’ll support Royal Parks and the Police to make that a reality as quickly as possible.’
The Met Police said: ‘Police were called at around 11:55hrs on Friday, 14 November, to Park Lane, Westminster following reports of a disturbance.
‘Officers arrived and located two men at the scene, with one in possession of a knife and a piece of glass.
‘A 33-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of affray and threats to kill, while a second man, aged 48, was arrested on suspicion of possession of a bladed article.
‘A 23-year-old woman was arrested on suspicion of threats to kill. All three remain in police custody.
‘This was an isolated incident and nobody was injured.’
Mr Wellesley was approached for comment.
