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During the melee, Banquo holds off the assailants so that Fleance can escape, but is himself killed. [16] The ghost of Banquo later returns to haunt Macbeth at the banquet in Act Three, Scene Four. A terrified Macbeth sees him, while the apparition is invisible to his guests.
Despite his success, Macbeth remains uneasy about Banquo's role in the prophecy. Inviting Banquo to a royal banquet, Macbeth discovers that Banquo and his young son Fleance will be riding out that night. Macbeth rapidly arranges to have Banquo and Fleance killed, hiring two men and later adding a third murderer to the plan. During the ambush ...
After Banquo appears at a banquet as a ghost, Macbeth seeks out the witches, who are performing a nude ritual. The witches and the spirits they summon deceive Macbeth into thinking he is invincible, as he cannot be killed except by a man not born of woman and will not be defeated until "Birnam Wood comes to Dunsinane."
The killings of Banquo and Fleance were important to Macbeth and, while the banquet that night was scheduled to start at 7pm, Macbeth did not appear until midnight. Paton believes the Third Murderer extinguished a light to avoid recognition, and later, Macbeth tells Banquo's ghost something that sounds like "In yon black struggle you could ...
Fleance and his father Banquo are both fictional characters presented as historical fact by the Scottish historian Hector Boece, whose Scotorum Historiae (1526–27) was a source for Raphael Holinshed's Chronicles, [1] a history of the British Isles popular in Shakespeare's time.
The characters Banquo and Fleance were also taken from Holinshed's works, but they are now considered to be inventions of the 16th century. [7] The primary difference in the Chronicles is through characterisation. The character of Macbeth is primarily depicted as a good ruler, a king who was fair and just for 17 years.
Malcolm signs a false confession in the guise of a suicide note and, following the discovery of the note, Macbeth becomes Chief Commissioner. Concerned by the prophecy about Banquo's offspring later replacing him, Macbeth arranges the murders of Banquo and his son, Fleance. Although Banquo is killed, Fleance escapes.
Macbeth and Banquo encounter the witches. Illustration from Holinshed's Chronicles (1577). Macbeth's life, like that of King Duncan I, had progressed far towards legend by the end of the 14th century, when John of Fordun and Andrew of Wyntoun wrote their histories. Hector Boece, Walter Bower, and George Buchanan all contributed to the legend.