Napoleon unmasked: Ridley Scott’s blockbuster takes liberties, but there are plenty of real treasures to discover in the old London home of his conqueror, the Duke of Wellington (which you can visit)

Ridley Scott’s blockbuster Napoleon, starring Joaquin Phoenix as the little Corsican general, is full of inaccuracies. At least, that’s the general consensus.

Napoleon did not bomb the pyramids. Marie Antoinette did not have long, frizzy hair when she was executed. And Napoleon’s French troops did not shout “Vive la France” in an American accent.

So, thank goodness for that Apsley House – the Duke of Wellington’s old home at Hyde Park Corner, with a beautiful museum and gallery with fascinating details about the French emperor.

Apsley House – which boasts the address of Number One, London – was owned by Wellington’s elder brother, the Marquis Wellesley.

But in 1817, two years after his stunning victory over Napoleon at the Battle of Waterloo, Wellington bought the house and turned it into a treasure trove of his triumphs.

Apsley House (above) – ‘which boasts the address of Number One, London’ – was owned by Wellington’s elder brother, the Marquis Wellesley

Everywhere you look in this part of London is Wellington Country. Next to Apsley House is the Wellington Monument – ​​a memorial to the Duke in the form of a nude statue of Achilles, the Greek hero of the Trojan War, made from melted down enemy cannon.

Opposite Apsley House is Wellington Arch, which originally supported a colossal statue of Wellington. The statue was considered so exaggerated that it was replaced by a chariot.

Step inside the house and you’ll be surrounded by Wellington’s impossibly large souvenirs of Napoleon and the Battle of Waterloo.

In the stairwell is a huge, naked statue of Napoleon by Antonio Canova. He is 3.5 meters tall, more than twice the actual height of Napoleon, who was only 1.80 meters tall.

He put it in storage, but it was purchased by the British government of Louis XVIII in 1816 and given to Wellington.

A new exhibition reveals the robes worn by the first Duke at three coronations; the mantelpiece was carried by his descendant at this year’s coronation. The current duke lives in the house today.

Pictured: one of the gems on display at Apsley House, a portrait of Napoleon by Robert Lefevre

You will also see Napoleon’s Death Mask. The original was made of plaster, a direct impression of Napoleon’s face as he died.

This is a large, bronze example. You can see that Wellington even ate Napoleon’s Sèvres porcelain tableware from 1812, decorated in an Egyptian style.

It was commissioned by Napoleon for his wife, Empress Joséphine, and presented to the duke by Louis XVIII in 1818.

Apsley House is also one of London’s best unsung galleries.

There are portraits of Wellington by Goya and Sir Thomas Lawrence.

In 1813, during the Battle of Vitoria, Wellington took possession of an exceptional collection of Spanish paintings from the baggage train of Joseph Bonaparte, Napoleon’s older brother.

These include Danaë, one of the world’s greatest Titians, and four Velázquez photographs, including a wonderfully shrewd portrait of Pope Innocent X.

In the main room you can see Robert Lefèvre’s portrait of Joséphine, purchased by Wellington in 1851. The Empress points invitingly to her exposed nipple. When presented with such a sublime vision, Napoleon must undoubtedly have shouted, “Yes tonight, Josephine!”