For Hyde Park Corner read "heroes corner"; even in the subway, beneath the turmoil of traffic, the Duke of Wellington's heroic exploits are retold in murals. The years of war against the French, and the subsequent final defeat of Napoléon at the Battle of Waterloo in 1815 made Wellington -- Arthur Wellesley -- the greatest soldier and statesman in the land. The house is flanked by imposing statues: opposite is the 1825 John Nash Wellington Arch with the four-horse chariot of peace as its pinnacle (open to the public as an exhibition area and viewing platform). Just behind Wellington Arch, and cast from captured French guns, the legendary Achilles statue points the way with thrusting shield to the ducal mansion from the tip of Hyde Park. Next to Apsley House is the 1828 Decimus Burton gateway to the park.

Once known, quite simply, as No. 1, London, this was long celebrated as the best address in town. Built by Robert Adam and later refaced and extended, this housed the Duke of Wellington from 1817 until his death in 1852. As the Wellington Museum, it has been kept as the "Iron Duke" liked it -- even the railings outside are painted pale green as the duke once had them -- his uniforms and weapons, his porcelain and plate, and his extensive art collection are displayed heroically. Unmissable, in every sense, is the gigantic Canova statue of a nude (but fig-leafed) Napoléon Bonaparte, Wellington's archenemy, which presides over the grand staircase. The most stunning is the Waterloo Gallery, where the annual banquet for officers who fought beside Wellington was held. With its heavily sculpted and gilded ceiling, its feast of old master paintings on red damask walls, and commanding gray candelabra, it's an orgy of opulence. There are commemorative weekends on either side of Waterloo Day. Telephone or check the Web site for details. COST: £4.50. Tube: Hyde Park Corner.