The Real Birnam Wood: Background information when reading Birnam Wood

The Real Birnam Wood

This article relates to Birnam Wood

Eleanor Catton's novel Birnam Wood and the guerrilla gardening group at its center draw their name from lines in Shakespeare's Macbeth, serving as the novel's epigraph, in which one of the witches prophesies:

Macbeth shall never vanquish'd be until
Great Birnam wood to high Dunsinane hill
Shall come against him.

Macbeth, in the height of hubris, scoffs—how could a forest "come against" anyone? He finds out of course, when his enemy Malcolm orders his army to cut branches off the trees in Birnam Wood to tie to their bodies, disguising themselves before attacking and defeating Macbeth at Dunsinane.

Birnam Wood is—or was—a real place in Scotland, located outside the village of Dunkeld in Perthshire. According to historical records, Shakespeare may have visited Birnam Wood when, in 1589, he was part of a comedic theatrical troupe that toured Perth, Birnam and Aberdeen. At that time, the wood would have been very large, covering both sides of the River Tay.

Today, however, after centuries of timber harvesting, only two trees remain: the Birnam Oak and the Birnam Sycamore. The Birnam Oak may date back to Shakespeare's visit in the late 16th century. It certainly looks ancient—many of its lower branches rest on crutches, and the bottom 10 feet of its trunk (which has an impressive 24-foot circumference) is hollow. The nearby Birnam Sycamore is likely "only" about 300 years old. Both trees are included on the Scottish Forestry Commission's list of the 100 most important heritage trees.

The oak's roots suffered damage after flooding from Storm Desmond in 2016, and more recently, the tree appears to be suffering from brown rot, according to an arborist, which has caused branches to collapse. There's an active "Save the Birnam Oak" campaign raising money to stabilize the tree's trunk and protect it from future floods and soil erosion, though it's anyone's guess how much longer this part of the legendary Birnam Wood that once inspired Shakespeare will remain for today's visitors to see.

The Birnam Oak, Dunkeld, Perthshire in Scotland
Photo by Gordon Hatton (CC BY-SA 2.0)

Filed under Places, Cultures & Identities

This "beyond the book article" relates to Birnam Wood. It originally ran in April 2023 and has been updated for the March 2024 paperback edition. Go to magazine.

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