A Royal passion

King Charles I was praised by Sir Peter Paul Rubens as: 'The greatest lover of paintings among the princes in the world', sending agents across the continent to build the finest collection of art in British royal history. But he was neither the first King of England to frame his ideal of kingship through art, nor the first to do so with dramatic consequences.

Join Tim Maddison on a tour of the Gallery's collection, from Correggio to Tintoretto, to reveal how King, Queen and Court brought not only great paintings but great artists to this country during a tumultuous but influential period that changed the course of the arts in Britain forever. Maddison will also talk to the legacy of artwork collected by Richard II, Henry VIII, George III and Queen Victoria.

Tim Maddison is an accredited expert guide. Maddison completed the Sotheby's Works of Art Course after university, before spending the next five years working at Sotheby's and Phillips Bond Street, surrounded by an ever-changing carousel of treasures. This embedded a love for works of art, exhibitions and galleries. Maddison then went on to work as a dealer in vintage film posters, Americana and Art Deco, before opening London's first public gallery for vintage film and music posters. In his youth his favourite painting at the National Gallery was, 'The Family of Darius before Alexander', and he never imagined that decades later he would have the privilege of sharing its delights and that of so many other favourites with visitors.