Historical Character: King Macbeth and Queen Mary
Macbeth came to the throne through a bloody coup when he toppled King Duncan. He proved to be a courageous man and ambitious because he wanted to become the king, and the only way he could do it was by killing the king. He used force to achieve his goal. Machiavelli thought that a prince should use whatever he has at his disposal to hold on to power and govern his kingdom. In this case, he would have approved of Macbeth killing Duncan’s father in the battle because according to him, a prince cannot live only the ideals of being virtuous.
Sometimes a prince will do a bad thing if it is advantageous to him “Hence it is necessary for a prince wishing to hold his own to know how to do wrong and to make use of it or not according to necessity” (Machiavelli XV par.2).
King Macbeth was liberal and secure during his reign. He managed to build a positive reputation for himself. He had a good reputation with the church, and in 1850, he visited Rome, where it is said, he gives to the poor silver, which he scattered like seeds. Many heard of his generosity to the poor, thus improving his image both home and abroad. However, Machiavelli might not have approved of this kind of generosity because to him, if he stopped dishing silver to the poor they would consider him bad in the future. Instead, he should have used that money to strengthen his army against external threats.
Macbeth’s liberality would not do him any good in the end as Machiavelli says “Therefore it is wiser to have a reputation for meanness which brings reproach without hatred than to be compelled through seeking a reputation for liberality to incur a name for rapacity which begets reproach with hatred” (Machiavelli XVI par.5).
Queen Mary was crafty and knew she had to act quickly to ascend to the throne after the death of King Edward IV. She spread the word around the kingdom of her accession to the throne and eventually had the support of the people. She used the army to her advantage, and those sent to arrest her came to her side begging for mercy. In Machiavellian philosophy, she was crafty as a fox, she saw the traps set ahead of her and managed to escape them, “Therefore, it is necessary to be a fox to discover the snares” (Machiavelli XVII par. 1).
Queen Mary ascended to the throne and eliminated the people she considered a threat to her throne. For instance, she had Queen Jane arrested after she overthrew her from the throne. She was not afraid of destroying her reputation for the sake of her throne, and later she had the former queen Jane her cousin assassinated. Machiavelli would have approved Queen Mary because she did all that was under her power to remain strong in her throne. She was a staunch catholic and sought the restoration of England to Catholicism and had many Protestants killed. She was called bloody Mary for the killings of the Protestants during her reign (Queen Mary 1 par. 11).
She managed to inspire fear in those who opposed or did contrary to her will. Eventually, many people fled the kingdom. According to Machiavelli “a prince when he must proceed against the life of someone, he must do it on proper justification and for manifest cause” (Machiavelli XVII par. 1). Queen Mary also exercised cruelty when she deemed it necessary because she realized that being lenient with her subjects would lead to her downfall when she was attacked in a bid to be overthrown from her throne (“Mary 1” par. 7-8).
Like Machiavelli urged she made a few examples from those who had taken part in the attempted coup “Therefore a prince, so long as he keeps his subjects united and loyal, ought not to mind the reproach of cruelty; because with a few examples he will be more merciful than those who, through too much mercy, allow disorders to arise” (Machiavelli XVII par. 1).
The fictional Macbeth in Shakespeare’s play Macbeth compares to the prince referred to by Machiavelli. He possesses the traits that Machiavelli considers important for a prince, such as courage and nobility. He has excellent battle skills, and this trait would aid a prince greatly in battle. He murders King Duncan through the encouragement of his wife Machiavelli states that “it is necessary for a prince…to learn how not to be good” (Machiavelli).
Macbeth exhibits the quality of not being good always to ascend to the throne. In this regard, he would have had Machiavelli’s approval as a ruler. Macbeth was cunning and knew how to get people on his side. For instance, he turned them against Banquo because he was afraid his descendants would inherit his throne. Macbeth told the people that they had been poor because of Banquo “That it was he in the times past, which held you/So under fortune” (3.1.117-8).
He also made them believe that Banquo was against them “Both of you know Banquo was your enemy” (3.1.131-2). He uses deception just as Machiavelli urges that it is necessary to rule because one will always find someone willing to be deceived. He gave the example of Alexander VI who “did nothing else but deceive men… nevertheless his deceit always succeeded according to his wishes, because he well understood this side of mankind” (Machiavelli XVIII par. 2)
Macbeth later kills Macduff’s family to protect his interests. He says, “For mine own good all causes shall give way. I am in blood” (3.2.24). He kills without regret because he wants to protect his power, according to Machiavelli unleashing cruelty on his subjects, which a prince sometimes has to do. On the contrary, Machiavelli might not consider Macbeth to be a fit ruler. He does not exhibit the ability to rule the people because his conscience troubles him. He does not know how not to be good for the letter. He is unable to become a great king because he lacks the virtues to please his people, as he is preoccupied with his problems.
Works Cited
Machiavelli, Nicolo. The Prince. n.d. Web.
Mary 1 Queen of England. n.d. Web.
Queen Mary 1. n.d. Web.
Shakespeare, William. Macbeth. n.d. Web.