Macbeth

Macbeth (d. 1057), king of Scotland, formerly chief of the province of Moray. Macbeth seized the throne of Scotland after killing King Duncan I in battle (1040). He upheld his wife's royal descent as his basis for claiming the crown. In 1057 Malcolm III, son of Duncan I, killed Macbeth at Lumphanan. Shakespeare's tragedy Macbeth is partially based on Holinshed's Chronicles of these events.

See also: Scotland; Shakespeare, William.