Banquo is a character in William Shakespeare's 1606 play Macbeth. Banquo is at first an ally to Macbeth, his co-captain in the battle against the rebels, and they are together when they meet the Three Witches. After prophesying that Macbeth will become king, the witches tell Banquo that he will not be king himself, but that his descendants will be. Later, Macbeth sees Banquo as a threat to his lust for power and has him murdered; Banquo's son Fle...
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Banquo is a character in William Shakespeare's 1606 play Macbeth. Banquo is at first an ally to Macbeth, his co-captain in the battle against the rebels, and they are together when they meet the Three Witches. After prophesying that Macbeth will become king, the witches tell Banquo that he will not be king himself, but that his descendants will be. Later, Macbeth sees Banquo as a threat to his lust for power and has him murdered; Banquo's son Fleance, however, escapes. Banquo's ghost returns in a later scene, causing Macbeth to react with alarm.
Shakespeare borrowed the character of Banquo from Holinshed's Chronicles, a history of Britain published by Raphael Holinshed in 1587. In Chronicles, however, Banquo is an accomplice to Macbeth in the murder of the king, rather than a loyal subject of the king who is seen as an enemy by Macbeth. Shakespeare may have changed this aspect of his character in order to please King James I, who was said to be a descendant of the real Banquo.
Banquo...
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