Former London homes of the Brazilian and US Ambassadors have been transformed into spectacular apartments

The former London homes of the Bonaparate family (of Napoleon fame), the Brazilian and US Ambassadors and the De Beers diamond dynasty, have been transformed into spectacular apartments by Amazon Property.

London’s only Royal crescent, The Park Crescent is Grade I listed, designed by John Nash (1752-1835) and built by Henry Peto in 1812-1820 as luxurious residences for the family and friends of HRH Prince George, The Prince Regent and Acting Head of State. Many were converted into offices in the late twentieth century until purchased by Amazon Property in 2013. They have now been restored to residential use, with two to four bedroom duplex, mezzanine and lateral residences.

One of the residences in the Royal crescent was originally owned by Henry Peto, the wealthy contractor who built the iconic Nash property. In 1826 he sold it for £7,200 (a fortune at the time) to Viscount Manuel Rodriguez Gameiro Pessora, the first Brazilian Ambassador to London and friend of Brazilian Emperor Pedro I and King George IV. The property then served as the Brazilian Ambassador’s residence until 1940, when bombing forced the residency to relocate to Mount Street.

One of London’s Blue Plaques on the building’s façade highlights that it was the home of Charles Francis Adams, Abraham Lincoln’s American Ambassador to London who lived there from 1863 to 1866. Charles Adams returned to the US in 1869, but his son, the US historian Henry Brooks Adams, used the crescent as his London residence between 1878–1908.

Residents of the Royal crescent have also included Lord Joseph Lister, pioneer of antiseptic surgery; General Sir George Ashe, Commander of the British Bengal Army; Count Joseph-Napoleon Bonaparte and family (brother of French Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte), and Sir Charles Wheatstone, inventor of the electric telegraph.

Each residence at The Park Crescent has its own character and distinctive features; the apartments range from 1,429 sqft (133 sqm) to 4,127 sqft (383 sqm) in size, with ceilings up to 3.8 metres high. Apartments have spacious double or triple height reception rooms overlooking the eight acres of The Park Crescent’s private gardens and Regent’s Park. Director at Amazon Property Charles Gourgey said: “In our view this is the most exceptional, unique and exciting property launch in London this year.”

The lateral apartments at The Park Crescent are available for immediate occupation; prices start from £3,950,000. www.theparkcrescent.com

To register an interest to view the new residences please contact Knight Frank on T: +44 (0) 207 861 5321 or www.knightfrank.co.uk or Aston Chase on T: +44 (0) 207 724 4724 or www.astonchase.com.