On a gun platform atop the battlements of Castle Elsinore, Officer Barnardo arrives to relieve sentinel Francisco of his watch. Barnardo challenges Francisco to identify himself first, and the two exchange small talk about the weather. Francisco complains, “For this relief much thanks, ’tis bitter cold. / And I am sick at heart.”
Horatio and Marcellus enter and greet Francisco, identifying themselves as loyal Danish subjects, and Francisco exits. Marcellus asks Barnardo if he has seen “this thing,” “this apparition” tonight, and Barnardo assures him that he has seen nothing. Marcellus tells Barnardo that he has invited Horatio to see the Ghost himself, as he trusts Horatio to “approve our eyes and speak to it.” Horatio doubts the Ghost will appear, but listens intently as Barnardo prepares to retell the tale of the Ghost’s previous visitation.
Before Barnardo can say much, however, the Ghost appears, and Marcellus encourages Horatio to address the spirit. Horatio cannot deny that he, too, sees the Ghost. All three men agree that the Ghost is real; in fact, they recognize it as the “majesty of buried Denmark” — the recently dead King Hamlet. They entreat the Ghost to stay and talk, but it dissolves into the night.
