Macduff

mak-duff, Earl of Fife, a Scottish hero of the eleventh century. He was the principal agent in overthrowing Macbeth, the usurper; and in restoring Malcolm Canmore, son of Duncan, to the throne of Scotland. He was granted many privileges as a reward for his deed. Among them, a sanctuary or place of refuge was assigned him to which he and his successors might flee in case of committing unpremeditated murder. This sanctuary was a cross erected in the pass of Strathearn. The Cross Macduff, as it was called, stood for five hundred years, and the pedestal still remains. Shakespeare has introduced Macduff into his play of Macbeth. He is represented as of a rather mild disposition, but, aroused almost to madness by the slaughter of his wife and children, he meets Macbeth, fights with him, and kills him.