Who becomes the new king of Scotland in Macbeth?
At the end of Macbeth, Malcolm, son of Duncan, emerges as the rightful King of Scotland. After his father's murder, Malcolm fled to England while his brother Donalbain entered exile in Ireland. Having forged an alliance with Macduff, he returns to Scotland to destroy Macbeth and claim the throne. He enters the final scene having won the battle over Macbeth's forces, and is greeted by the sight of Macduff bearing the head of Macbeth. With the usurper Macbeth dead, Macduff hails Malcolm as king:
Hail, King! for so thou art. Behold where stands
The usurper's cursed head. The time is free.
I see thee compass'd with thy kingdom's pearl
That speak my salutation in their minds,
Whose voices I desire aloud with mine:
Hail, King of Scotland!
The play ends with a lengthy speech by Malcolm in which he thanks his thanes, including Ross and Macduff, by...
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naming them earls, the first time such a title had been bestowed upon a Scottish noble. Malcolm and his entourage exit, making their way to Scone, the traditional coronation site for Scottish kings. There his ascension to the throne will be made official.
In Macbeth, who is the heir to Scotland's throne?
Malcolm is the rightful heir to the Scottish throne. In act 1, scene 3, Macbeth receives the seemingly favorable prophecy that he will one day be king. Immediately after receiving the prophecy from the Three Witches, Macbeth begins to contemplate assassinating King Duncan in order to usurp power and become king of Scotland. In act 1, scene 4, King Duncan laments the former Thane of Cawdor's death before congratulating Macbeth on his various accolades. Macbeth responds by thanking King Duncan, who believes he has planted the seeds of greatness in Macbeth by giving him the title Thane of Cawdor.
King Duncan then expresses his overwhelming joy before bestowing his kingdom to his oldest son, Malcolm, who he names the prince of Cumberland. After King Duncan names Malcolm the heir to his throne, Macbeth realizes that he must step over Malcolm in order to become king or completely reject the idea. In an aside, Macbeth reveals his ambitious nature and acknowledges that he will have to commit a bloody crime or forget the prophecy by saying,
"Stars, hide your fires; Let not light see my black and deep desires. The eye wink at the hand, yet let that be Which the eye fears, when it is done, to see" (Shakespeare, 1.4.52-55).
When Malcolm is named as the heir to the Scottish throne, Macbeth realizes that he must act swiftly in order to fulfill the witches' prophecy and eventually decides to commit regicide in order to take the title by force.
In Macbeth, who is named as the heir to the Scottish throne?
King Duncan names his eldest son, Malcolm, as heir to his throne. This happens soon after the traitors Macdonwald, the thane of Cawdor, and the Norwegian troops, under the leadership of Sweno, are defeated by the Scottish army. The thanes, generals and other leaders are all gathered at King Duncan's palace in Forres, when he makes the following announcement:
... We will establish our estate uponOur eldest, Malcolm, whom we name hereafterThe Prince of Cumberland; which honour must
Not unaccompanied invest him only,
But signs of nobleness, like stars, shall shine
On all deservers. From hence to Inverness,
And bind us further to you.
The king has also graciously offered numerous accolades and rewards to various other men, such as Macbeth who had been granted the title thane of Cawdor, for their unwavering defence of king and country. He extends honour and praise to all out of gratitude for their courage and loyalty.
Since Macbeth is now the highest ranking general in Duncan's army and also the king's cousin, Duncan decides that they shall proceed to his castle at Inverness, there to celebrate their victory. The king clearly has much admiration for his cousin and calls him 'worthy.' It is ironic that he has such high regard for him since Macbeth has already started to plot his downfall, so that he may ascend to the throne.
In an aside Macbeth mutters:
The Prince of Cumberland! that is a step
On which I must fall down, or else o'erleap,
For in my way it lies. Stars, hide your fires;
Let not light see my black and deep desires:
The eye wink at the hand; yet let that be,
Which the eye fears, when it is done, to see.
In these lines he clearly states his intent and sees the fact that Malcolm has been named heir as a development which should either lead to his failure of obtaining the crown or which he has to overcome, for it is a hurdle in his quest. In this instance he metaphorically asks that the stars not shine and thus veil his evil plan in darkness.
It is evident in the last two lines that Macbeth has already thought about how he was going to execute Duncan. The eye must not know what the hand is doing when it commits a foul deed. It is as if Macbeth has already seen the dagger with which to murder Duncan, in his hand. However, that should not make him falter or stop, for that which the eye is afraid to see will be done and will be seen to be done. Macbeth is determined to follow through with his plot.
Does Macbeth believe he is heir to the throne? Who is Macbeth's heir?
In (4.1) MacBeth demands that the witches give him reassurance that he is heir to the throne. The witches show him a series of apparitions which he takes literally and is assured that he is heir to the throne. The third apparition is a crowned child, holding a tree in his hand. The child urges MacBeth to "be lion mettled, proud, and take no care / who chafes, who frets, or where the conspirers are" since he is safe until "Great Birnam wood to high Dunsinane Hill / Shall come against him" (4.1.103-7). MacBeth takes this literally and thinks he will remain heir. Unfortunately, the last vision of the line of Kings with Banquo at the end stirs him to greater bloodshed and mayhem. It is after this where MacBeth orders the slaughter of MacDuff's wife and children. Act four doesn't make MacBeth think he should be heir, but it shows how the dtate of MacBeth's confidence and how he is actively trying to protect his throne.
It's a great question, and one of the biggest problems in the play. Why does Macbeth kill Duncan when Duncan has two sons who would legally just succeed their father's throne? It doesn't make any sense. But the reason Macbeth does it is quite simple: because of the witches' prophecy in his first scene:
All hail, Macbeth, who shalt be king hereafter.
Though it doesn't quite make absolute sense, Shakespeare handles it by having Malcolm and Donalbain, Duncan's two sons, run away to England and Ireland respectively - and everyone, we learn later from Macduff, suspects them of their father's murder. By some process or other (unexplained by the play) Macbeth then ascends the throne.
Yet the heir to the throne is still a problem. Macbeth knows that the witches predicted that Banquo would "get kings" (beget kings - father kings) though Banquo himself would never be a king. Therefore, when Macbeth is the king, he needs to secure his throne - he is terrified that Banquo's children will steal his throne. Yet Lady Macbeth and Macbeth are childless:
Our fears in Banquo
Stick deep...
They hail'd him father to a line of kings:
Upon my head they placed a fruitless crown
And put a barren sceptre in my gripe,
Thence to be wrench'd with an unlineal hand,
No son of mine succeeding.
Macbeth is aware that he needs to remove the competition: but also that he needs to solve the succession problem - a king with a son means a stable country. A king with no heir - doesn't.