King John signing Magna Carta reluctantly

What it is

This is a painting by Arthur C. Michael, who died in 1945, showing a crowned king in a red robe seated at a red-draped table. He signs a document with a quill while armoured barons and clergy in mitres stand around him, with banners and spears behind. The painting was made before 1945, and its title describes King John signing reluctantly. The record is a digital image of the painting.

Why it matters

King John agreed to the Magna Carta in 1215 with the barons who opposed his rule. The painting was made many centuries later, so it reflects how later artists imagined the event rather than how it was recorded at the time. Pictures like this have shaped popular ideas about the charter as a turning point in the history of liberty.

Look closer

• How does the painter show the king's feelings about signing the charter?
• Why might a painter from the twentieth century choose to show armoured barons and clergy?
• What does this painting leave out about the negotiations and the people who were not present?