The King’s Staircase at Hampton Court Palace, designed by Christopher Wren (1632–1723), was completed in the late 17th century as part of the palace’s Baroque transformation. The staircase features wrought-iron balustrades by French Huguenot blacksmith Jean Tijou (active 1688–1712), adding a decorative yet functional element to the design.
The murals, painted by Antonio Verrio (c. 1636–1707) in 1701–1702, are a Baroque masterpiece blending classical mythology and contemporary politics. Often compared to the Escalier des Ambassadeurs at Versailles by Charles Le Brun (1619–1690) created in 1679, their complex and subtle allegorical meaning makes them open to multiple interpretations. Due to the political sensitivity of the iconography—centred on Britain’s recent victory in the Nine Years’ War and its critique of Louis XIV—many scholars argue that Verrio, an Italian artist, could not have authored such a nuanced programme. Instead, he likely executed ideas shaped by others, particularly Matthew Prior (1664–1721).
Prior, a poet and court figure contributed an intricate narrative familiar to the elite and King William III. Drawing on texts such as Ovid’s ‘Metamorphoses’ (8 CE), Homer’s ‘Iliad’ and ‘Odyssey’ (8th century BCE), Virgil’s ‘Aeneid’ (29–19 BCE), Horace’s ‘Odes’ (23 BCE), Plutarch’s ‘Parallel Lives’ (c. 100 CE), Cesare Ripa’s ‘Iconologia’ (1593), and Julian the Apostate’s ‘The Caesar’s’ (c. 361 AD), its complex iconography is provoking thought and dialogue as a ‘Baroque conversation piece.’
The allegory portrays Alexander the Great as William III, supported by Hercules and crowned by Victory, symbolising triumphs like the Peace of Ryswick (1697). Opposing him, Julius Caesar, representing Louis XIV, is critiqued through Julian’s satire in ‘The Caesars’, mocking Caesar’s arrogance—parallels also drawn in Prior’s writings on Louis XIV. This subtle allegory underscores William’s moral and political superiority while inviting alternative interpretations through its layered complexity.
