It was once described as 'the ghost of Sussex' and is shrouded by trees and scaffolding – yet it's becoming increasingly difficult for this haunting palace to evade attention.
Hamilton Palace is one of the biggest mansions in the country, eclipsing even Buckingham Palace in its size.
Yet nobody appears to live there, and the palace STILL remains unfinished despite construction having started nearly 40 years ago.
The pile hit headlines in 2020 as drone pictures were released of the unfinished and, reportedly, 'mostly abandoned' project.
Surrounded by acres of land and woodland, anybody walking around the perimeter is met with an abundance of hostile signs warning the public to stay away, Sussex Live reports.
One local resident told The Mirror: "As far as I know nothing has changed. It’s difficult to see what work has or hasn’t been done as there are a number of threatening 'keep out' and 'private' signs dotted around the property."
In 1990, the owner caused outrage after blocking public paths around the estate with razor wire and mounds of discarded refrigerators.
Built to house the art collection of property tycoon Nicholas van Hoogstraten - one of the area's wealthiest people - the £40m construction also has its own mausoleum on the edge of a small lake.
Work started on the huge mansion
, although there hasn't appeared to be any progress since a member of the public last ventured inside in 2000.
In 2016, nearby residents called for parts of the palace to be used to house the homeless, prompting its tycoon owner to say in a statement: "The 'homeless' - the majority of whom are so by their own volition or sheer laziness - are one of the filthiest burdens on the public purse today.
"The chance of my offering an opportunity for them to occupy Hamilton Palace is just ludicrous."
It was reported by The Times that Mr van Hoogstraten also said that "even the most moronic of peasants would be able to see from the pictures that we have been busy landscaping the grounds of the palace so as to prepare for scheduled works".
The tycoon has been quoted as saying that the walls of scaffolding are currently in place to "as a part of ongoing routine maintenance".
Who is Nicholas van Hoogstraten?
A convicted criminal and extremely controversial figure, Mr van Hoogstraten is a Sussex native who started his empire building properties in the Bahamas. His net worth has been estimated at £500m but is likely to be much higher due to assets placed with his children.
The magnate is no stranger to appearing in the news due to his various court appearances over the years, most notably in 2002 when he was jailed for 10 years for the organised manslaughter of business rival Mohammed Raja.
The conviction was later overturned and he was released, although later ordered to pay the victim's family £1.5m. Mr Raja's wife later claimed the family were yet to receive a penny.
In 1968, he was jailed for paying a gang to throw a grenade into the home of a Sussex Rabbi whose son owed him money. Evidence in court heard of deeply anti-Semitic comments the tycoon had once made to the victim's wife.
In the 1980s, he was charged but cleared of harassing his tenants, but subsequently faced a fine for contempt of court after saying of the judge, "I'll get him in 10 years' time". He was fined again in 2000 similarly using threatening language against a barrister.
The same year, he gave an interview to The Sunday Independent in which he discussed a dispute with the Ramblers Association over blockades he put on his land on a public right of way, describing the group as "disenfranchised perverts".
In a recent interview in 2020, he said of his estate: "I own nearly everything around here [in Sussex], and by own it, I mean own it ‒ there's no mortgage on anything."
It's thought the Hamilton Palace estate is now owned by his children through the company Messina Investments, from which he resigned as director in 2002.
