Three Witches in the context of "Banquo"

The Tragedy of Macbeth, often shortened to Macbeth (/məkˈbɛθ/), is a tragedy by William Shakespeare, estimated to have been first performed in 1606. It dramatises the physically violent and damaging psychological effects of political ambitions and power. It was first published in the Folio of 1623, possibly from a prompt book, and is Shakespeare's shortest tragedy. Scholars believe Macbeth, of all the plays that Shakespeare wrote during the reign of King James I, contains the most allusions to James, patron of Shakespeare's acting company.

In the play, a brave Scottish general named Macbeth receives a prophecy from a trio of witches that one day he will become King of Scotland. Consumed by his latent ambition and spurred to violence by his wife, Macbeth murders King Duncan and takes the Scottish throne for himself. Then, racked with guilt and paranoia, he commits further murders to protect himself from enmity and suspicion, becoming a tyrannical ruler in the process. The violence perpetrated by the power-hungry couple leads to their insanity and finally to their deaths.

Thane of Cawdor is a title in the Scottish nobility, allotted to the thane, or lord, of the village of Cawdor.The current 7th Earl Cawdor, of Clan Campbell of Cawdor, is the 25th Thane of Cawdor.

In William Shakespeare's play Macbeth, this title was given to Macbeth after the previous Thane of Cawdor was captured and executed for treason against King Duncan. Macbeth hears a prophecy of his new thaneship from the Three Witches shortly before receiving word of the matter from Duncan, such that while the rule of Cawdor may be inconsequential itself it nonetheless proves the inevitability of the Witches' secondary prediction of Macbeth's ascent to become King of Scotland. The historical King Macbeth fought a Thane of Cawdor who died in battle, but he did not thereby acquire the title himself.

Fleance (also spelled Fléance or Fleans, /ˈfleɪɒns/; Latin: Fleanchus) is a figure in legendary Scottish history. He was depicted by 16th-century historians as the son of Lord Banquo, Thane of Lochaber, and the ancestor of the kings of the House of Stuart. Fleance is best known as a character in William Shakespeare's play Macbeth, in which the Three Witches prophesy that Banquo's descendants shall be kings. Some screen adaptations of the story expand on Fleance's role by showing his return to the kingdom after Macbeth's death.

Shakespeare's play is adapted from Holinshed's Chronicles, a history of the British Isles written during the late 16th century. In Holinshed, Fleance escapes Macbeth and flees to England, where he fathers a son who later becomes the first hereditary steward to the King of Scotland.