The ceiling paintings of the Banqueting House are the most important commissions of their kind surviving in London, and were painted by one of the most important artists of the age, Sir Peter Paul Rubens.

Rubens was first approached in 1621 to produce paintings to decorate the ceiling of the newly built Banqueting House, part of Whitehall Palace, the principal residence of the monarch in London. Designed by Inigo Jones and completed in 1622, the Banqueting House was built in the new Palladian style of architecture which Jones had encountered on recent trips to Italy – in contrast to the old Tudor buildings of the palace which had been largely constructed in the reign of Henry VIII (1509-1547).

Other commitments meant that Rubens was unable to carry out the task immediately, and King James I died in 1625. His son, Charles I, decided to celebrate his father's reign by reinstating the plan for the ceiling paintings. Rubens agreed to the commission while in London. In his new design he emphasised the benefits of James's peaceful reign, wisdom and diplomacy.

Charles no doubt intended that the ceiling would celebrate not only his father's virtues but, by implication, also his own. The canvases were completed in Antwerp by August 1634, and were shipped to London the following year. Charles I was a great patron and collector of art, and the Rubens ceiling paintings are some of the finest works to enter the royal collection during his reign. The room itself became the principal setting for public audiences and ceremonies of state, particularly the reception of foreign ambassadors.

It is poignant that the ceiling canvases were one of the last things Charles I would have seen as he was led out of the Banqueting House to be beheaded on 30 January 1649, following his defeat in the English Civil War. His art collection was subsequently sold off and widely dispersed under the Protectorate of Oliver Cromwell. However, Rubens's paintings remain a testament to his cultural patronage, and are the only series of ceiling paintings by the artist still displayed in their original location.