List of Historical Figures in The Man in the High Castle

Throughout the series, a number of real world historical figures appear, taking on different roles in the alternative universe.

Germany[]

Adolf Hitler: Fuhrer of the Greater German Reich. Hitler leads the Greater German Reich in the conquest of Europe, Western Asia, and the Eastern part of the Americas. Multiple assassinations against Hitler were attempted in the decades following the war, including a failed attempt by Reinhard Heydrich. Rumors circulated that Hitler's health was declining, but these were proven to be a mere rumor. Eventually, an assassination attempt by Martin Heusmann succeeds, leading to Hitler's death and the subsequent succession by Heinrich Himmler.
Erwin Rommel: Erwin Rommel survives World War II, and apparently manages to maintain Hitler's favor. In either late 1945 or 1946, Rommel is appointed as the first Reichsmarschall (a historical military title roughly equivalent to "Generalissimo" or "Chief General"; in practice, head of state) of the American Reich. He likely oversaw the assimilation of the Americans, including the founding of the American Reich Bureau of Investigation (ARBI). At some point before 1960, Rommel was replaced by George Lincoln Rockwell, most likely following his death.
Eva Braun Hitler: Wife of Adolf Hitler. Eva and Adolf's marriage continues until Adolf's death.

Heinrich Himmler: Head of the SS and eventual Fuhrer of the Greater German Reich. Prior to Hitler's death, rumors circulated that Himmler and Goebbels were in a power struggle with each other due to Hitler's declining health. However, these are likely just rumors, as it is eventually proven that Hitler is in good health. Following Hitler's death, Himmler becomes the new Fuhrer, and hunts down those who assassinated his predecessor. He also opposes the creation of the Hydrogen Bomb after seeing its effects in one of the Man in the High Castle's reels. He also plans to use the Die Nebenwelt project to invade other worlds, and places an unofficial embargo on the Japanese Empire. Just like his predecessor, Himmler survives one assassination attempt before being assassinated by John Smith and Wilhelm Goertzmann.
Josef Mengele: High-ranking Nazi scientist and head of the Die Nebenwelt project.
Joseph Goebbels: Though very little is seen of Goebbels in the show, it is confirmed in Now More Than Ever, We Care About You that he continued his role as the Reich Minister of Propaganda. Prior to Hitler's death, rumors circulated that Himmler and Goebbels were fighting each other for power due to Hitler's declining health. However, these are likely just rumors, as it is eventually proven that Hitler is in good health.
Reinhard Heydrich: Senior Group Leader and General of Police for the SS. Heydrich helped to quell a rebellion in Africa. Later, he helped organize the attempted assassination of Crown Prince Akihito in order to provoke a war between the Japanese Empire and the Greater Nazi Reich. He also took part in an attempted assassination of Adolf Hitler planned by Martin Heusmann. When this plot failed, Heydrich was captured and eventually executed on the orders of John Smith.
Werner Heisenberg: German scientist who contributed to the Nazi nuclear program, eventually having the Atomic Bomb named after him: the Heisenberg Device. His invention was first used on Washington, D.C. in 1945. Originally, his invention was only known to the Greater Nazi Reich, but Rudolph Wegener and Nobosuke Tagomi made the plans available to the Japanese Empire in order to create Mutually Assured Destruction and thus maintain peace.
Adolf Eichmann: An SS-Oberst-Gruppenführer

Margarete Himmler: Wife of Heinrich Himmler.

Japan[]

Akihito: The Crown Prince of the Japanese Empire. Akihito advocated for peace between the Japanese Empire and the Greater Nazi Reich, and got along especially well with Nobusuke Tagomi, trade minister of the Japanese Pacific States. During one of his visits to these states, he was shot by a Nazi Sturmbannführer named Karl Muller, who wished to provoke war between Japan and Germany. Akihito survived his injuries and returned to Japan. According to General Hata, Akihito no long wished to maintain peace following his assassination.
Hirohito: Emperor of the Japanese Empire and father of Crown Prince Akihito. Hirohito rules over the Eastern portion of Asia and the Western portion of the Americas. Unlike Hitler, it is unknown how much control Hirohito had over Japan during World War II. Under his rule, however, the Japanese Empire has become increasingly liberal, with the exception that they have adopted the Racial Purity Laws of the Greater German Reich.
Michiko: The Crown Princess of the Japanese Empire and the wife of Crown Prince Akihito. Michiko is shown to be friends with Nobuske Tagomi, and is present for the attempted assassination of her husband.

United States of America[]

Franklin D. Roosevelt: In 1933, FDR is assassinated by Italian anarchist Giuseppe Zangara. Thus, Roosevelt is never able to become president, and the United States never recovers from the Great Depression.
George Lincoln Rockwell: Head of state in Nazi America. Though he fought in World War II, Rockwell adopted Nazi ideas and assimilated into the Greater Nazi Reich following their victory. By the time of Hitler's death, Rockwell had began to lose the favor of politicians in Berlin, especially Hitler's successor Heinrich Himmler. Eventually, Rockwell loses power and is exiled to Cuba, before John Smith sends an assassin to finish him.
J. Edgar Hoover: Former leader of the United States Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and subsequently leader of the American Reich Bureau of Investigation (ARBI). Hoover led the FBI up until the United States lost World War II in 1945. Following this, Hoover assimilated into the American Reich and became the head of the ARBI. Hoover later becomes a political ally with George Lincoln Rockwell. He obtains evidence on John Smith, which he attempts to present to Rockwell but withholds it after being blackmailed. Hoover is eventually killed by Smith after he attempts to present the evidence to Heinrich Himmler during Smith's assassination of Himmler. Though Hoover only operates in the Greater Nazi Reich, his wiretapping tactics are utilized by the Japanese Empire.
John F. Kennedy: Appears during the episode Kintsugi while Nobusuke Tagomi is traveling to an alternate world where the allies won, where Tagomi watches him give a speech on television where Kennedy confronts Nikita Krushchev over the Cuban Missile Crisis. Tagomi also reads a newspaper where Kennedy places an embargo on Cuba. Kennedy's whereabouts in the main universe remain unknown.
John Wayne: An actor in the United States prior to America's defeat during World War II. Shortly following the war, Wayne joined the American Resistance. In 1946, only one year after the war ended, Wayne was killed by German soldiers in the Battle of Dayton in Ohio. Following his death, many Japanese collectors became interested in John Wayne memorabilia, such as a belt buckle that once belonged to Wayne which was purchased by Robert Childan.
June Allyson: An actress in the American Reich who stars in a Nazi comedy entitled The Punch Party with Rock Hudson.
Rock Hudson: An actor in the American Reich who stars in a Nazi comedy entitled The Punch Party with June Allyson. In this universe, Hudson is likely either heterosexual or secretive about his homosexuality.

Soviet Union/Russia[]

Joseph Stalin: When Germany won the war against the Soviet Union, Stalin was captured and executed in 1949, resulting in the collapse of the Soviet Union
Nikita Krushchev: Mentioned by John F. Kennedy during a speech about the Cuban Missile Crisis, which Nobusuke Tagomi witnesses while traveling to an alternate world where the Allies won World War II. Krushchev's whereabouts in the main universe remain unknown, but it is likely that he was executed alongside Stalin given that he was a Communist who participated in World War II.

United Kingdom[]

Winston Churchill: Prime Minister of the United Kingdom during World War II. He was assassinated in 1940.

Cuba[]

Camilo Cienfuegos: Cienfuegos may be one of the mercenaries who briefly appears with Che Guevara in the bar when George Lincoln Rockwell is assassinated, but this has not been confirmed. Because the Communist Revolution of Cuba never took place, Cienfuegos would not have gone missing.
Ernesto "Che" Guevara: Briefly appears when George Lincoln Rockwell flees to Cuba. Since the Communist Revolution never took place, Che was never captured and executed. Che works as a mercenary in Cuba, and is an associate of John Smith, assassinating Rockwell on Smith's behalf.
Fidel Castro: Mentioned during the episode Duck and Cover in the films from the Man in the High Castle, which discusses the conflict between Cuba and the United States over a naval depot near Guantanamo Bay. He is later indirectly referenced when Nobusuke Tagomi travels to a world where the Allies won, as he reads about the embargo John F. Kennedy imposed on Cuba. Castro may be one of the mercenaries who briefly appears in the bar with Che Guevara when George Lincoln Rockwell is assassinated, but this has not been confirmed. Regardless of whether or not Castro is alive, the Communist Revolution of Cuba never took place.

Vietnam[]

Thich Quang Duc: In the episode Sabra, a monk sets himself aflame in protest of the Japanese Empire's atrocities in the Japanese Pacific States. It is unknown whether this is intended to be Thich Quang Duch or merely inspired by him. However, it is entirely possible that it is him, as Vietnam (where Quang Duc was from) is a part of the Japanese Empire, and the series takes place around the same year that Quang Duc died in the real world.