The people whose real names are used in the novel are listed below in alphabetical order.
Bertelsen, Aage. Head of the “Lyngby Group” (named after the suburban area north of Copenhagen). They rescued hundreds of Jews and arranged for their transport to Sweden. He was the headmaster of Aarhus Cathedral School and became a noted author on religion, philosophy, education and Danish literature. There were many such groups, far more than I could deal with in a novel.
Bertelsen, Gerda. Wife of Aage, active with the Lyngby Group in the rescue of the Jews. Briefly imprisoned by the Gestapo. Rescued by another Dane who, unbelievably, managed to talk the Gestapo into releasing her.
Bertram, (Kapitan) Heinrich. Captain of the German hospital ship Monte Rosa and a friend of George Duckwitz. He pretended his ship needed major repairs rather than allow it to be used to transport the Jews. Subsequently punished by being sent to the Russian front.
Best, (SS General Dr.) Werner. German Plenipotentiary for Denmark. Hitler instructed Best to “Rule with an Iron Hand”, but Best thought he would get better results from a milder approach. Before being assigned to Denmark, Best earned the unofficial title of the “Butcher of Paris” for the murder of thousands of Gypsies. Trained as a lawyer, he also wrote a scholarly paper that made the argument that genocide was legal if it succeeded in killing the entire group of intended victims. The psychiatrists who examined him before his trial as a war criminal decided he was a psychopath with tendencies toward self-pity. He instigated the arrests of the Jews but sabotaged the effort by alerting George Duckwitz, a German official that Best knew would warn the Danes of the impending raids. After the war, a Danish court sentenced him to death but the sentence was later changed to a number of years of imprisonment.
Bishop of Copenhagen. The spiritual head of the Danish Lutheran church.
Camman, (Corvettekapitan) Richard. German Harbor Master for Copenhagen and a friend of George Duckwitz. He sent all of the German patrol boats for repairs and maintenance the week of the raids because he opposed the arrest of the Jews. He was later punished by being sent to the front lines against Russia.
Churchill, (Prime Minister) Winston. The Prime Minister of Britain during the Second World War.
Clausen, Fritz. The head of the Danish Nazi Party who was dedicated to Hitler. He assisted in numerous atrocities against his fellow Danes. After the war he died in prison while awaiting trial for treason.
Duckwitz, Annemarie. Wife of the German Shipping Liaison officer, George Duckwitz. She supported him in his efforts to save the Jews from the Nazis and the novel includes a direct quote from her diary.
Duckwitz, George. The German Shipping Liaison in Copenhagen. Duckwitz had lived in Denmark for 15 years and was appalled at the Nazi racism. He believed he had to follow God’s laws, even when that meant disobeying his country’s laws. The novel includes several verbatim quotes from his diary. Duckwitz played a crucial role in the rescue of the Jews.
Goebbels, Dr. Paul Joseph. One of Hitler’s closest associates, he held the title of Reich Minister of Public Enlightenment and Propaganda, and directed the Nazi propaganda effort. He was quite embarrassed by bad publicity and worked to avoid it whenever possible.
Hedtoft, Hans. The leader of the Danish Social Democrats. He and several of his colleagues carried Duckwitz’s warning about the impending raids to the leaders of the Jewish community.
Henriques, Carl Bernard. A prominent attorney and the President of the Jewish Community. He did not initially believe Hans Hedtoft about the raids, but after being convinced helped alert the community.
Himer, (General) Kurt. Chief of Staff for the German forces that occupied Denmark. Later replaced by General Best.
Himmler, (Reichfuhrer SS) Heinrich. One of Hitler’s top officials.
Hitler, Adolf. Chancellor and Fuhrer of Germany. Hitler was a gifted demagogue with a messianic vision for Germany and contempt for all other peoples. He seemed to believe the German armies were invincible and attacked all of Germany’s neighbors, one after the other. Japan was in a similar military frenzy and subdued most of Asia before attacking the US at Pearl Harbor. Thereafter, Japan and Germany (with a few smaller countries on their side) were at war with most of the rest of the world until their defeat several very bloody years later.
Hanneken, (General) Hermann von. In charge of the German occupying army. His job was to take care of the details of the occupation so that General Best could concentrate on the raw materials and weapons that the Germans wanted from the Danes.
Juhl. An infamous Gestapo officer who searched for the fleeing Jews north of Copenhagen, in the same area the Bertelsens and their Lyngby Group arranged for transport of the Jews to Sweden. Juhl was responsible for capturing the 80 Jews hiding in the Gilleleje Church and caused many anxious moments for the Danish resistance.
Johan, Father. The parish priest for Gilleleje Church where 80 Jews were arrested by the Gestapo. Father Johan tried to stop Officer Juhl from searching his church for the Jews.
Knudsen, Jorgen. A Copenhagen ambulance driver who, when he heard about the plan to arrest the Jews, took his ambulance and spent the entire day searching for Jewish homes and warning them. If they had no other place to hide, he took them to a hospital.
Knudsen, Peter. President of the Danish State Railroad.
Koch, (Eminent Professor) Hal. A well known theologian and teacher, he worked tirelessly throughout the war to stimulate a sense of Danish heritage (via folk song concerts, lectures, and a youth organization), in order to encourage the resistance.
Koch, Bodil. Wife of Hal Koch and a therapist, she was well known in her own right.
Koster, Dr. Karl. A doctor at Bispedjek Hospital who was instrumental in the doctor’s petition protesting the arrest of the Jews and a leader in helping the Jews escape.
Lange, (Pastor) Ivor. The influential pastor of Frederiksberg Church. Issued a very strong statement urging all Danes to help the Jews.
Levine, David. An orthodox Jew who helped many other Jews find their way to the Lyngby Group and then on to Sweden.
Lubke, (Kapitanleitenant) Friedrich Wilhelm. German Chief of Sea Transport and another friend of George Duckwitz. Conspired with Kapitan Heinrich to pretend the Monte Rosa needed repairs and therefore couldn’t be used to transport arrested Jews. Later punished by being sent to the Russian Front.
Melchior, (Rabbi) Marcus. Chief Rabbi of Denmark.
Meollar, Christian. A member of the Danish parliament who was very outspoken against the Germans. When it seemed the Germans were about to arrest him, he escaped to England and used his very strong oratorical abilities to urge on the resistance.
Munk, (Pastor) Kaj. A playwright, poet, and pastor, Munk was one of Denmark’s most revered authors. The Gestapo murdered him shortly after a fiery sermon denouncing them.
Mussolini, Benito. Dictator of Italy and an ally of Hitler.
Nicolaisen, P. A business associate of Mr. Pundik. Despite a bad leg, he knocked on the door of every cottage along a ten kilometer stretch of beach before finding his friends.
Pancke, (SS General) Gunther. Appointed to command the SS and Gestapo forces in Denmark. A rival of General Best.
Pedersen, Knud. The head of the “Churchill Group”. Knud and eight other high school boys decided to use sabotage against the Nazis. They were quickly caught and imprisoned in a Danish jail. With the help of their jailers, they frequently snuck out of the jail, engaged in acts of sabotage, and were securely locked up again by morning.
Pundik, Herbert. A sixteen year old Jewish boy. The novel has the Pundik family being captured in the Gilleleje Church. Eighty Jews were captured in the church, but the Pundiks were not among those captured.
Rex, King Christian. The king of Denmark. The story about Best wanting to put a Nazi flag on his castle and King Christian telling him that the Danish soldier taking it down would be himself, is true. The king played an important symbolic role in maintaining Danish morale throughout the war.
Ribbentrop, (Foreign Minister) Joachim von. General Best’s superior officer, part of the German High Command
Roosevelt, (President) Franklin Delano. The President of the US during the Second World War. Roosevelt considered Hitler a madman who threatened the entire world and did all he could to get the US into the war. Without Roosevelt bending a lot of laws to provide supplies, it is doubtful that Britain would have survived the Nazi onslaught.
Sejr, Arne. A seventeen year old who had just graduated from high school when the Germans occupied Denmark, Arne wrote the Ten Commandments for Danes. These Commandments were soon known and used all over the country. Arne was instrumental in setting up and running the Student’s Information Service, a sort of underground Associated Press that provided news and stories for the illegal newspapers that were a key part of the resistance. Arne’s post traumatic stress syndrome and his relationship with Brigitte are complete fabrications.
Stauning, (Prime Minister) Thorvald. The Danish Prime Minister when the Germans invaded.