As Extraordinary! is a crossover of all published fiction, many fictional characters are present throughout its setting. An effort to list and describe each and every one of these characters is made here. Keep in mind, though, that some characters--though fictional--are listed elsewhere. For characters who are directly intended to be historical figures rather than replacements, even if heavily fictionalized, see here. For characters who do not come from Earth, see here. For demons, divinities, and spirits, see here.
Utnapishtim {The Epic of Gilgamesh ₂₁₀₀ᵇᶜ}
Utnapishtim (c. 3rd millennium BC; dates unknown) was an Ancient Mesopotamian who, in 2351 BC, was tasked by Enki Ea--believed to be a god--with saving himself and his family from the Deluge, as his homeland was peripheral to the Land of Nod and would soon be destroyed by the floodwaters. Utnapishtim built a gigantic ship, The Preserver of Life, and saved himself and his relatives along with the craftsmen who helped build the ship and a number of animals and grains. After twelve days, The Preserver of Life drifted near Mt. Nisir and Utnapishtim docked it there for seven days as the floodwaters receded. Legend states that, for saving humanity from extinction in the flood, Utnapishtim and his family were granted immortality and a place among the gods, but this was a myth invented to hide the true source of his immortality: a Lazarus Pit, the same first used by Ra’s al-Ġūl to achieve immortality himself. {DC Comics}
Dilios {300 ₁₉₉₈}
Dilios (died 479 BC; date of birth unknown) was a Spartan warrior, one of the three hundred that accompanied Leonidas I to the Battle of Thermopylae. He fought alongside the other Spartans until their defensible position, which allowed them to negate the numerical superiority of the opposing Persians, was rendered useless by the hunchbacked Spartan exile Ephialtes. As the Persians began to move into position to outflank the Greeks, Leonidas ordered Dilios to return to Sparta and use his oratory skills to rally the rest of the country against the Persians, and in part because he had lost his eye in the previous days' combat. Though he did return to Sparta and successfully convinced the Spartans to support the war, he came to be regarded as a coward by his countrymen for leaving Thermopylae, even on the orders of the king. Dilios later participated in the Battle of Artemisium {300: Rise of an Empire ₂₀₁₄} and the Battle of Plataea, where he died when he broke formation to kill several Persians before being killed himself. His suicidal bravery redeemed Dilios for Thermopylae in the eyes of the Spartans, but he was given no other posthumous awards because he had clearly wanted to die.
Merlin {Arthurian legend, The Once and Future King ₁₉₃₈}
Merlin (dates unknown; first appeared in 5th century) was a Brythonic wizard best known as the friend, ally, and mentor of King Arthur. Unusually, even for Mages, Merlin travels backwards in time, not forwards, meaning that when he first met Arthur he was at the end of his life but was actually born perhaps centuries or even millennia later.
Dracula {Dracula ₁₈₉₇, Castlevania ₁₉₈₆, Hellsing ₁₉₉₇, etc.}
Dracula is an enigmatic figure. Dracula as he is most well-known first came to the world's attention in 1897 when--with permission from Wilhemina Harker, who compiled accounts written by herself, her husband Jonathan, John "Jack" Seward, and Abraham Van Helsing, along with relevant newspaper clippings--author Bram Stoker published Dracula, exposing the existence of what was claimed to be a nosferatu vampire who lived in a castle near the Borgo Pass in the Carpathian Mountains, though none have been able to confirm this story as the castle itself does not, or no longer, exists. Jonathan Harker's account states that Dracula himself claimed to be a descendant of Attila the Hun, though Harker and company themselves speculated that he was actually Vlad Ţepeş, a Prince of Wallachia also known as Vlad the Impaler. Others claim differently: unverified accounts contributed by the equally enigmatic Belmont family state that Dracula was once a man named Mathias Cronqvist the Wise, (1062 - 1094; dates unknown) a master strategist and alchemist who sought to bring his wife Elisabetha back when she died of illness. To that end, he attempted to take revenge against God Himself by becoming a vampire and therefore gaining immortality--unlike almost all other known vampires, Cronqvist became one of his own accord rather than being turned by an existing vampire. Cronqvist's friend and ally Leon Belmont refused his offer of immortality and instead swore that his family would forevermore hunt and destroy him, and Cronqvist took the new name Dracula. The Belmonts' account indeed claims that they have destroyed Dracula numerous times, often ransacking his fortress of Castlevania to do so, but Dracula keeps returning from the dead every hundred years, his stronghold returning alongside him. If the Belmonts' account is believed, it would explain why Dracula's castle as claimed by the Harkers was never found. Confusing matters, there are rumors that Dracula was not destroyed by the Harkers and their allies at all, but instead was enthralled to the Van Helsing family and served the British government during World War II as part of the so-called Hellsing Organization, but it is unclear if this is actually the same vampire.
Jubair al Hakim {Assassin's Creed ₂₀₀₇}
Jubair al Hakim (September 1 1145 - November 29 1217) was a Spanish Muslim geographer and poet who made a pilgrimage to Mecca from 1183 to 1185. During his travels, he wrote of Ṣalāḥ ad-Dīn's domains in Egypt and the Levant, then about the hybridized culture of Sicily, which at the time had recently been retaken by Christian forces after being controlled by Muslims for a century. Some claim, however, that Jubair's accounts of his return from Mecca are, in fact, fabrications: these sources state that Jubair never left the Middle East, instead staying behind in the Levant with secret allies in both sides of the Third Crusade which began shortly after his pilgrimage. These sources also claim that Jubair never lived to see age 50--he was actually killed by one Altaïr Ibn-La'Ahad, a member of the Ḥashshāshīn, in 1191 while conducting a book burning in Damascus.
Majd Addin {Assassin's Creed ₂₀₀₇}
Majd Addin (March 7 1145 - November 8 1234) was a Kurdish historian, jurist, and scholar best known for his biography of Ṣalāḥ ad-Dīn, to whom he was a contemporary and countryman. He is said to have been an eye witness to the Siege of Acre and the Battle of 'Arsūf and a close friend of Ṣalāḥ ad-Dīn himself, though other sources contest these claims. Conflicting reports state that he was assigned as governor of Jerusalem on behalf of Ṣalāḥ ad-Dīn at the time of the Siege of Acre and that he ruled the city as a tyrant, conducting public executions of those who would not indulge him for farcical reasons, claiming that his victims had violated local and religious laws that he himself had broken. These sources also claim that Majd Addin was himself killed at such an execution by a member of the Ḥashshāshīn named Altaïr Ibn-La'Ahad, whose own codices claim that he made certain to cut out Majd Addin's throat even after fatally stabbing him for his unabashed claim that he only committed his own crimes and sins because he could and that he enjoyed it. If these conflicting accounts are believed, then Majd Addin did not observe the Battle of 'Arsūf; these same reports claim that Ibn-La'Ahad, not Majd Addin, was at 'Arsūf instead.
John Falstaff {Henry IV ₁₅₉₇, The Merry Wives of Windsor ₁₆₀₂}
John Falstaff (1380 - November 5 1459) was an English knight who fought during the Hundred Years' War.
Bianca Gonzaga {The Borgias ₂₀₁₁}
Bianca Gonzaga (May 19 1474 - February 13 1539) was one of the leading women of the Italian Renaissance, a patron of the arts and fashion influential enough that she was a trendsetter throughout Italy and even at the French court. She was the regent of Mantua while her husband, Francesco II Gonzaga, was away commanding the armies of Venice.
Akechi Jinsai {The Asian Saga ₁₉₆₂}
Akechi Jinsai (March 10 1528 - July 17 1582) was a samurai and general of the Sengoku period, a retainer to Goroda Nobunaga who later became famous for rebelling against his daimyō at Honnō-ji. The animosity between Jinsai and Nobunaga began when Nobunaga broke a peace agreement with Hatano Hideharu by having him executed, which in turn led to Hideharu's retainers murdering Jinsai's mother, though some claim that this was only a cover and that Jinsai was just a bloodthirsty psychopath. {Sengoku Basara ₂₀₀₅} Later ignoring Nobunaga's orders to march west and aid Hashiba Hideyoshi in the fight against the Mori clan, Jinsai famously declared, "The enemy is at Honnō-ji!" on June 21 and he and his retainers surrounded the temple and set it on fire. It is not entirely clear what happened to Nobunaga--there are conflicting claims that he was killed by Jinsai's followers, took his own life, or simply disappeared--but Jinsai claimed personal responsibility for his death. Jinsai declared himself Shogun, claiming legitimacy through the Toki clan, in turn meaning he was descended from the Minamoto clan, and looted Azuchi Castle to pay for his men's continuing loyalty, though all efforts he made to legitimize himself with the Imperial Court failed. His relatives and allies quickly turned on him, even brokering peace with their enemies in order to deal with him first, including Yoshinaga Toranaga. Even after taking up position at Shōryūji Castle, Jinsai and his forces were no match his former allies and they were routed. After reigning as Shogun for only thirteen days, Jinsai died while en route to Sakamoto, rumored to have been killed by a peasant with a bamboo spear.
Snow White {Snow White ₁₈₁₂}
Schneeweißchen (born 1533; date of death unknown; transliterated Snow White) was the daughter of Philip IV of Waldeck-Wildungen and his first wife, Margaret of East Frisia, said to be one of the most beautiful women in the world as described as having skin white as snow, hair black as ebony, and lips red as blood. In her youth, she was courted by Lamoral, the Count of Egmont, who at first introduced himself as "Florian," but she was forced to break ties with him when she left home because she and her stepmother Catherine of Hatzfeld were unable to get along. She befriended a heptad of dwarfs--bespectacled Blick, grumpy Flick, joyful Click, Snick who was allergic to everything, drowsy Plick, mute Whick, and bashful Quee--and lived with them until 1554 when Catherine, jealous that Snow White may have become more beautiful than her, tried to have her murdered, first by an assassin who was unable to do the deed and then by an enchanted comb and corset before finally seeming to succeed with a poisoned apple. However, Snow White was revived by Lamoral, seemingly by "true love's kiss," and they were wed. She bore him eleven children and, understandably, was one of the most vocal proponents for his release when he was captured by Spanish forces in 1568, to no avail.
Goroda {The Asian Saga ₁₉₆₂}
Goroda Nobunaga {June 23 1534 - June 21 1582} was a powerful daimyō of the Sengoku period, a skilled ruler and successful businessman on the micro- and macroeconomic scale who attempted to unify all of Japan under one banner. Though noble in his goals, Nobunaga is also considered one of the most brutal leaders in history, eliminating anyone and everyone who stood in his way. In modern Japan, Nobunaga is quite polarizing, variously depicted as either a respectful leader or a demonic warlord; it could very well be said that Nobunaga was both, just and fair to his allies and absolutely ruthless to his enemies. Nobunaga ultimately met his end when former ally Akechi Jinsai turned against him and cornered him at Honnō-ji and burned it to the ground. However, it is unclear what happened to Nobunaga as his body was never shown publicly; some suggest that he did not die at all, but somehow went into hiding.
Toda Hiromatsu {The Asian Saga ₁₉₆₂}
Toda Hiromatsu (June 3 1534 - October 6 1610) was a daimyō of the Sengoku period and a senior general to Goroda Nobunaga. After the Incident at Honnō-ji, Hiromatsu refused to join forces with its instigator Akechi Jinsai despite the fact that his son Buntaro was married to Jinsai's daughter and instead delegated his status as daimyō to Buntaro. Despite this, Hiromatsu maintained his role as a cultural advisor to the Toranagas, especially Yoshinaga, and Toyotomi Nakamura. He was later asked by Ishido Mitsunari to join the Western Army in 1600, and his garrison in Tanabe Castle was besieged when he refused.
Nakamura {The Asian Saga ₁₉₆₂}
Toyotomi Nakamura (March 17 1537 - September 18 1598) was a major general, politician, and samurai during the Sengoku period of Japan, rega rded as the country's second "great unifier." He was the successor to Goroda Nobunaga and responsible for bringing the Warring States period to an end. Nakamura is responsible for a number of cultural legacies which persisted until the Meiji period, including the restriction that only samurai could bear arms, and more controversially initiated the persecution of Japanese Christians.
Sarutobi Sasuke {Japanese oral tradition}
Sarutobi Sasuke (15th century; dates unknown) was shinobi, or ninja, of the Kōga school of ninjustu known for his monkey-like speed and agility; some even claim that was abandoned at a young age and raised by a band of monkeys. He was a member (possibly the leader) of the Ten Braves, a band of ninja who aided Sanada Yukimura late in the Sengoku period. His ultimate fate is unclear, but it is commonly said that he was killed in battle against the forces of Yoshinaga Toranaga during the Siege of Osaka in 1615, though another account claims that he was forced to cut off his own foot after infiltrating Toranaga's camp and becoming ensared in a bear trap, after which he committed suicide to avoid being captured.
Yoshinaga Toranaga {The Asian Saga ₁₉₆₂}
Yoshinaga Toranaga (January 31 1543 - June 1 1616) was the founder of the Toranaga dynasty which controlled Japan for more than 250 years, until the Meiji Restoration. He is considered the third "great unifier" of Japan, succeeding Nakamura as Shogun.
Ruy Pérez de Viedma {Don Quixote ₁₆₀₅}
Ruy Pérez de Viedma (September 29 1547 - April 23 1616) was a Spanish writer, widely considered the greatest writer in that language and a man head of his time for writing Don Quixote, held to be the first novel in history. He wrote of Spanish gentleman Alonso Quijano who seemingly lost his mind and decided he was a knight-errant after meeting the man and his "squire," later seeking out Sancho Panza to learn more about Quijano.
Martin Alvito {The Asian Saga ₁₉₆₂}
Martin Alvito (1558/61/62 - 1633/4; dates unknown) was a Portuguese Jesuit missionary to Japan, where he acted as an interpreter and published the first Japanese-to-Portuguese dictionary in 1603.
Elizabeth Bartley {Castlevania ₁₉₈₆}
Elizabeth Bartley de Ecsed (August 7 1560 - August 21 1614; as a vampire, <1911 - March 17 1917) was a Hungarian noblewoman and serial killer infamous for abducting as many as 650 victims, all women and most of them young, so that she could literally bathe in their blood in an effort to achieve immortality after learning of and misunderstanding the phenomena of Lazarus Pits. {DC Comics} She was eventually caught and executed for her crimes. Nearly three hundred years later, she was brought back from the dead as a nosferatu by the witch Drolta Tzuentes. Bartley inserted herself into the Unification or Death secret society, otherwise known as the Black Hand, shortly after its inception with the alias "Medusa" and used their plans to form a Yugoslavic state to her own ends: by enabling the assassination of Franz Ferdinand, Europe was thrown into chaos, which she would use to bring Dracula (who had been killed a quarter-century earlier) back to life, but she was stopped by John Morris and Eric Lecarde.
Ishido Mitsunari {The Asian Saga ₁₉₆₂}
Ishido Mitsunai (1559 - November 6 1600) was a samurai and military commander of the late Sengoku period, probably best-remembered as commander of the Western Army at the Battle of Sekigahara.
Toda Mariko {The Asian Saga ₁₉₆₂}
Toda Mariko (1563 - August 25 1600; baptized as Maria) was a rare female samurai as well as a Japanese Christian and the daughter of Akechi Jinsai.
Toda Buntaro {The Asian Saga ₁₉₆₂}
Toda Buntaro (November 28 1563 - January 18 1646) was the eldest son of Toda Hiromatsu.
John Blackthorne {The Asian Saga ₁₉₆₂}
John Blackthorne (September 24 1564 - May 16 1620; called Anjin by the Japanese) was an English navigator, supposedly the "first English pilot to ever get through Magellan's Pass" while manning the Dutch ship Erasmus, who was captured and imprisoned upon his arrival in Japan. He was taken in by Yoshinaga Toranaga as an asset against his rival Ishido Mitsunari for national control. Blackthorne eventually integrated into Japanese culture, almost exclusively using the name Anjin, and became a shipwright for Toranaga as well as participating in the destruction of Osaka Castle.
Ochiba {The Asian Saga ₁₉₆₂}
Ochiba (1569 - June 4 1615) was a Japanese concubine and the second wife of Toyotomi Nakamura and the mother of his son Yaemon, though it is greatly contested to this day if Yaemon was actually Nakamura's son--even Ochiba was not entirely sure, but Nakamura accepted him into the succession regardless.
Sudara {The Asian Saga ₁₉₆₂}
Sudara Toranaga (May 2 1579 - March 14 1632) was the second Shogun of the Toranaga dynasty and third son of Yoshinaga Toranaga, ruling from 1605 until his abdication in 1623.
Naga {The Asian Saga ₁₉₆₂}
Naga Toranaga (October 18 1583 - October 15 1603) was one of Yoshinaga Toranaga's sons, charged with the care of the Anayama of Kai following the destruction of the Takeda clan, of which he was also descended. Sickly from birth, Naga died just three days short of twenty years and the Takeda clan was completely extinguished.
Yaemon {The Asian Saga ₁₉₆₂}
Toyotomi Yaemon (September 8 1593; date of death unclear) was the son and successor of Nakamura, the first man to unify Japan.
Hassling-Ketling {Sienkiewicz's The Trilogy ₁₈₈₄}
Hassling-Ketling of Elgin (died 1687; dates unknown) was a Scottish mercenary who entered the service of John II Casimir of Poland.
Benjamin Avery {The Pyrates ₁₉₈₃}
Benjamin Avery (baptized August 23 1659 - disappeared 1696) was an English pirate active in the Atlantic and Indian Oceans in the mid-1690s, also known as the Arch Pirate and King of the Pirates by his contemporaries, and was one of the few pirates to retired with his loot without being arrested or killed in battle. Though he was only active for two years, he was so successful and famous that many followed in his footsteps, signalling the start of the Golden Age of Piracy. Avery vanishes from all records in 1696 and it is unclear exactly what became of him.
Robinson Crusoe {Robinson Crusoe ₁₇₁₉}
Robinson Crusoe (c. 1676 - December 13 1721; born Robinson Kreutznaer) was a privateer for the Royal Navy who was notable for becoming marooned for twenty-eight years before finally being rescued.
William Tavington {The Patriot ₂₀₀₀}
William Tavington, 1st Baronet, (August 21 1754 - January 17 1781) was a British soldier and politician known for his service during the American War of Independence and controversial for his purported crimes as leaders of the British Legion (also known as the Green Dragoons) which massacred surrendering American soldiers at the Battle of Waxhaws in 1780. Other sources, however, claim that he committed other atrocities before then, including the burning of a church fulls of townspeople who had been supporting his chief opponent, Benjamin Martin. In the midst of the Battle of Cowpens, Tavington engaged Martin in single combat and was ultimately killed by him.
Percy Blakeney {The Scarlet Pimpernel ₁₉₀₅}
Percy Blakeney (November 11 1761 - October 22 1840) was an English baronet who infiltrated France numerous times during the Reign of Terror to rescue aristocrats sentenced to death by guillotine with the secret identity of the Scarlet Pimpernel and the help of a network of various contacts. In his time, Blakeney was seen as just another fop while his Scarlet Pimpernel persona was a daring hero to the British and their allies while to the French he was a master criminal who taunted their government by leaving calling cards of a simple scarlet pimpernel flower. The Scarlet Pimpernel was one of the most famous men in Europe in his time, all but vanishing after the end of the French Revolution, though there were purported sightings of him through to the middle of the 19th century. Blakeney took his secret identity to the grave and was not exposed as the Scarlet Pimpernel until the 20th century when journals belonging to him and his wife Marguerite were released to the public, and was popularized by Emma Orczy's 1903 play based on him.
Jin-Qua {The Asian Saga ₁₉₆₂}
Jin-Qua (1769 - September 4 1843) was once the richest man in the world, the most important merchant in the Thirteen Factories of Guangzhou in China.
Dirk Struan {The Asian Saga ₁₉₆₂}
Dirk Lochlin Struan (February 24 1784 - July 21 1841) was the head of Struan & Company, the premier private trading company of 19th century Asia.
Robb Struan {The Asian Saga ₁₉₆₂}
Robb Struan, 1st Baronet (October 17 1796 - December 31 1878)
Edie Ochiltree {The Antiquary ₁₈₁₆}
Edie Ochiltree (18th century; dates unknown)
Marius Pontmercy {Les Misérables ₁₈₆₂}
Marius Pontmercy (February 26 1802 - May 22 1885)
Shevaun Tillman {The Asian Saga ₁₉₆₂}
Shevaun Tillman (May 18 1809 - 1877)
Grigory Alexandrovich Pechorin {A Hero of Our Time ₁₈₄₀}
Grigory Alexandrovich Pechorin (October 15 1814 - July 27 1841)
Quentin Trembly {Gravity Falls ₂₀₁₂}
Quentin Trembly (February 9 1814 - August 4 1886)
Willy Wonka {Charlie and the Chocolate Factory ₁₉₆₄}
Willy Wonka (August 10 1814 - July 7 1890) was a Swiss confection magnate widely considered the most talented choclatier in history, developing many candies and other sweets which seemingly defied the laws of nature and physics. After a mass leak of confidential information, Wonka fired all the workers at his factory in Vevey, Switzerland, and closed it down. Soon, though, locals began noticing that the factory was apparently in operation again despite no one being seen entering or leaving it. The truth came out in 1875 when Wonka suddenly held a contest in which five golden tickets were randomly distributed with Wonka chocolate bars, leading to a worldwide chocolate craze as people tried to find the tickets. At the end of the contest, it turned out that five children had acquired the tickets and the last to be announced, one Charlie Bucket, was eventually declared the winner and was made beneficiary of Wonka's company, inheriting it when Wonka passed away ten years later.
Marie Rogêt {The Mystery of Marie Rogêt ₁₈₄₂}
Marie Rogêt (c. 1820 - found July 28 1841) was a Parisian perfume shop employee best-known for her death, having been found in the Seine River under mysterious circumstances. Her death was investigated by the legendary detective C. Auguste Dupin, who determined that she had been dragged around by a cloth tied to her waist, killed with a cloth around her neck, and that her body was dumped into the river from a boat, suggesting that finding the boat would lead them to the murderer.
Shishio Makoto {Rurouni Kenshin ₁₉₉₄}
Shishio Makoto (August 1848 - 1879; dates unknown)
Zorro {Zorro stories ₁₉₁₉}
Diego de la Vega (c. 1829 - July 25 1853; also known as Zorro)
Utnapishtim (c. 3rd millennium BC; dates unknown) was an Ancient Mesopotamian who, in 2351 BC, was tasked by Enki Ea--believed to be a god--with saving himself and his family from the Deluge, as his homeland was peripheral to the Land of Nod and would soon be destroyed by the floodwaters. Utnapishtim built a gigantic ship, The Preserver of Life, and saved himself and his relatives along with the craftsmen who helped build the ship and a number of animals and grains. After twelve days, The Preserver of Life drifted near Mt. Nisir and Utnapishtim docked it there for seven days as the floodwaters receded. Legend states that, for saving humanity from extinction in the flood, Utnapishtim and his family were granted immortality and a place among the gods, but this was a myth invented to hide the true source of his immortality: a Lazarus Pit, the same first used by Ra’s al-Ġūl to achieve immortality himself. {DC Comics}
Dilios {300 ₁₉₉₈}
Dilios (died 479 BC; date of birth unknown) was a Spartan warrior, one of the three hundred that accompanied Leonidas I to the Battle of Thermopylae. He fought alongside the other Spartans until their defensible position, which allowed them to negate the numerical superiority of the opposing Persians, was rendered useless by the hunchbacked Spartan exile Ephialtes. As the Persians began to move into position to outflank the Greeks, Leonidas ordered Dilios to return to Sparta and use his oratory skills to rally the rest of the country against the Persians, and in part because he had lost his eye in the previous days' combat. Though he did return to Sparta and successfully convinced the Spartans to support the war, he came to be regarded as a coward by his countrymen for leaving Thermopylae, even on the orders of the king. Dilios later participated in the Battle of Artemisium {300: Rise of an Empire ₂₀₁₄} and the Battle of Plataea, where he died when he broke formation to kill several Persians before being killed himself. His suicidal bravery redeemed Dilios for Thermopylae in the eyes of the Spartans, but he was given no other posthumous awards because he had clearly wanted to die.
Merlin {Arthurian legend, The Once and Future King ₁₉₃₈}
Merlin (dates unknown; first appeared in 5th century) was a Brythonic wizard best known as the friend, ally, and mentor of King Arthur. Unusually, even for Mages, Merlin travels backwards in time, not forwards, meaning that when he first met Arthur he was at the end of his life but was actually born perhaps centuries or even millennia later.
Dracula {Dracula ₁₈₉₇, Castlevania ₁₉₈₆, Hellsing ₁₉₉₇, etc.}
Dracula is an enigmatic figure. Dracula as he is most well-known first came to the world's attention in 1897 when--with permission from Wilhemina Harker, who compiled accounts written by herself, her husband Jonathan, John "Jack" Seward, and Abraham Van Helsing, along with relevant newspaper clippings--author Bram Stoker published Dracula, exposing the existence of what was claimed to be a nosferatu vampire who lived in a castle near the Borgo Pass in the Carpathian Mountains, though none have been able to confirm this story as the castle itself does not, or no longer, exists. Jonathan Harker's account states that Dracula himself claimed to be a descendant of Attila the Hun, though Harker and company themselves speculated that he was actually Vlad Ţepeş, a Prince of Wallachia also known as Vlad the Impaler. Others claim differently: unverified accounts contributed by the equally enigmatic Belmont family state that Dracula was once a man named Mathias Cronqvist the Wise, (1062 - 1094; dates unknown) a master strategist and alchemist who sought to bring his wife Elisabetha back when she died of illness. To that end, he attempted to take revenge against God Himself by becoming a vampire and therefore gaining immortality--unlike almost all other known vampires, Cronqvist became one of his own accord rather than being turned by an existing vampire. Cronqvist's friend and ally Leon Belmont refused his offer of immortality and instead swore that his family would forevermore hunt and destroy him, and Cronqvist took the new name Dracula. The Belmonts' account indeed claims that they have destroyed Dracula numerous times, often ransacking his fortress of Castlevania to do so, but Dracula keeps returning from the dead every hundred years, his stronghold returning alongside him. If the Belmonts' account is believed, it would explain why Dracula's castle as claimed by the Harkers was never found. Confusing matters, there are rumors that Dracula was not destroyed by the Harkers and their allies at all, but instead was enthralled to the Van Helsing family and served the British government during World War II as part of the so-called Hellsing Organization, but it is unclear if this is actually the same vampire.
Jubair al Hakim {Assassin's Creed ₂₀₀₇}
Jubair al Hakim (September 1 1145 - November 29 1217) was a Spanish Muslim geographer and poet who made a pilgrimage to Mecca from 1183 to 1185. During his travels, he wrote of Ṣalāḥ ad-Dīn's domains in Egypt and the Levant, then about the hybridized culture of Sicily, which at the time had recently been retaken by Christian forces after being controlled by Muslims for a century. Some claim, however, that Jubair's accounts of his return from Mecca are, in fact, fabrications: these sources state that Jubair never left the Middle East, instead staying behind in the Levant with secret allies in both sides of the Third Crusade which began shortly after his pilgrimage. These sources also claim that Jubair never lived to see age 50--he was actually killed by one Altaïr Ibn-La'Ahad, a member of the Ḥashshāshīn, in 1191 while conducting a book burning in Damascus.
Majd Addin {Assassin's Creed ₂₀₀₇}
Majd Addin (March 7 1145 - November 8 1234) was a Kurdish historian, jurist, and scholar best known for his biography of Ṣalāḥ ad-Dīn, to whom he was a contemporary and countryman. He is said to have been an eye witness to the Siege of Acre and the Battle of 'Arsūf and a close friend of Ṣalāḥ ad-Dīn himself, though other sources contest these claims. Conflicting reports state that he was assigned as governor of Jerusalem on behalf of Ṣalāḥ ad-Dīn at the time of the Siege of Acre and that he ruled the city as a tyrant, conducting public executions of those who would not indulge him for farcical reasons, claiming that his victims had violated local and religious laws that he himself had broken. These sources also claim that Majd Addin was himself killed at such an execution by a member of the Ḥashshāshīn named Altaïr Ibn-La'Ahad, whose own codices claim that he made certain to cut out Majd Addin's throat even after fatally stabbing him for his unabashed claim that he only committed his own crimes and sins because he could and that he enjoyed it. If these conflicting accounts are believed, then Majd Addin did not observe the Battle of 'Arsūf; these same reports claim that Ibn-La'Ahad, not Majd Addin, was at 'Arsūf instead.
John Falstaff {Henry IV ₁₅₉₇, The Merry Wives of Windsor ₁₆₀₂}
John Falstaff (1380 - November 5 1459) was an English knight who fought during the Hundred Years' War.
Bianca Gonzaga {The Borgias ₂₀₁₁}
Bianca Gonzaga (May 19 1474 - February 13 1539) was one of the leading women of the Italian Renaissance, a patron of the arts and fashion influential enough that she was a trendsetter throughout Italy and even at the French court. She was the regent of Mantua while her husband, Francesco II Gonzaga, was away commanding the armies of Venice.
Akechi Jinsai {The Asian Saga ₁₉₆₂}
Akechi Jinsai (March 10 1528 - July 17 1582) was a samurai and general of the Sengoku period, a retainer to Goroda Nobunaga who later became famous for rebelling against his daimyō at Honnō-ji. The animosity between Jinsai and Nobunaga began when Nobunaga broke a peace agreement with Hatano Hideharu by having him executed, which in turn led to Hideharu's retainers murdering Jinsai's mother, though some claim that this was only a cover and that Jinsai was just a bloodthirsty psychopath. {Sengoku Basara ₂₀₀₅} Later ignoring Nobunaga's orders to march west and aid Hashiba Hideyoshi in the fight against the Mori clan, Jinsai famously declared, "The enemy is at Honnō-ji!" on June 21 and he and his retainers surrounded the temple and set it on fire. It is not entirely clear what happened to Nobunaga--there are conflicting claims that he was killed by Jinsai's followers, took his own life, or simply disappeared--but Jinsai claimed personal responsibility for his death. Jinsai declared himself Shogun, claiming legitimacy through the Toki clan, in turn meaning he was descended from the Minamoto clan, and looted Azuchi Castle to pay for his men's continuing loyalty, though all efforts he made to legitimize himself with the Imperial Court failed. His relatives and allies quickly turned on him, even brokering peace with their enemies in order to deal with him first, including Yoshinaga Toranaga. Even after taking up position at Shōryūji Castle, Jinsai and his forces were no match his former allies and they were routed. After reigning as Shogun for only thirteen days, Jinsai died while en route to Sakamoto, rumored to have been killed by a peasant with a bamboo spear.
Snow White {Snow White ₁₈₁₂}
Schneeweißchen (born 1533; date of death unknown; transliterated Snow White) was the daughter of Philip IV of Waldeck-Wildungen and his first wife, Margaret of East Frisia, said to be one of the most beautiful women in the world as described as having skin white as snow, hair black as ebony, and lips red as blood. In her youth, she was courted by Lamoral, the Count of Egmont, who at first introduced himself as "Florian," but she was forced to break ties with him when she left home because she and her stepmother Catherine of Hatzfeld were unable to get along. She befriended a heptad of dwarfs--bespectacled Blick, grumpy Flick, joyful Click, Snick who was allergic to everything, drowsy Plick, mute Whick, and bashful Quee--and lived with them until 1554 when Catherine, jealous that Snow White may have become more beautiful than her, tried to have her murdered, first by an assassin who was unable to do the deed and then by an enchanted comb and corset before finally seeming to succeed with a poisoned apple. However, Snow White was revived by Lamoral, seemingly by "true love's kiss," and they were wed. She bore him eleven children and, understandably, was one of the most vocal proponents for his release when he was captured by Spanish forces in 1568, to no avail.
Goroda {The Asian Saga ₁₉₆₂}
Goroda Nobunaga {June 23 1534 - June 21 1582} was a powerful daimyō of the Sengoku period, a skilled ruler and successful businessman on the micro- and macroeconomic scale who attempted to unify all of Japan under one banner. Though noble in his goals, Nobunaga is also considered one of the most brutal leaders in history, eliminating anyone and everyone who stood in his way. In modern Japan, Nobunaga is quite polarizing, variously depicted as either a respectful leader or a demonic warlord; it could very well be said that Nobunaga was both, just and fair to his allies and absolutely ruthless to his enemies. Nobunaga ultimately met his end when former ally Akechi Jinsai turned against him and cornered him at Honnō-ji and burned it to the ground. However, it is unclear what happened to Nobunaga as his body was never shown publicly; some suggest that he did not die at all, but somehow went into hiding.
Toda Hiromatsu {The Asian Saga ₁₉₆₂}
Toda Hiromatsu (June 3 1534 - October 6 1610) was a daimyō of the Sengoku period and a senior general to Goroda Nobunaga. After the Incident at Honnō-ji, Hiromatsu refused to join forces with its instigator Akechi Jinsai despite the fact that his son Buntaro was married to Jinsai's daughter and instead delegated his status as daimyō to Buntaro. Despite this, Hiromatsu maintained his role as a cultural advisor to the Toranagas, especially Yoshinaga, and Toyotomi Nakamura. He was later asked by Ishido Mitsunari to join the Western Army in 1600, and his garrison in Tanabe Castle was besieged when he refused.
Nakamura {The Asian Saga ₁₉₆₂}
Toyotomi Nakamura (March 17 1537 - September 18 1598) was a major general, politician, and samurai during the Sengoku period of Japan, rega rded as the country's second "great unifier." He was the successor to Goroda Nobunaga and responsible for bringing the Warring States period to an end. Nakamura is responsible for a number of cultural legacies which persisted until the Meiji period, including the restriction that only samurai could bear arms, and more controversially initiated the persecution of Japanese Christians.
Sarutobi Sasuke {Japanese oral tradition}
Sarutobi Sasuke (15th century; dates unknown) was shinobi, or ninja, of the Kōga school of ninjustu known for his monkey-like speed and agility; some even claim that was abandoned at a young age and raised by a band of monkeys. He was a member (possibly the leader) of the Ten Braves, a band of ninja who aided Sanada Yukimura late in the Sengoku period. His ultimate fate is unclear, but it is commonly said that he was killed in battle against the forces of Yoshinaga Toranaga during the Siege of Osaka in 1615, though another account claims that he was forced to cut off his own foot after infiltrating Toranaga's camp and becoming ensared in a bear trap, after which he committed suicide to avoid being captured.
Yoshinaga Toranaga {The Asian Saga ₁₉₆₂}
Yoshinaga Toranaga (January 31 1543 - June 1 1616) was the founder of the Toranaga dynasty which controlled Japan for more than 250 years, until the Meiji Restoration. He is considered the third "great unifier" of Japan, succeeding Nakamura as Shogun.
Ruy Pérez de Viedma {Don Quixote ₁₆₀₅}
Ruy Pérez de Viedma (September 29 1547 - April 23 1616) was a Spanish writer, widely considered the greatest writer in that language and a man head of his time for writing Don Quixote, held to be the first novel in history. He wrote of Spanish gentleman Alonso Quijano who seemingly lost his mind and decided he was a knight-errant after meeting the man and his "squire," later seeking out Sancho Panza to learn more about Quijano.
Martin Alvito {The Asian Saga ₁₉₆₂}
Martin Alvito (1558/61/62 - 1633/4; dates unknown) was a Portuguese Jesuit missionary to Japan, where he acted as an interpreter and published the first Japanese-to-Portuguese dictionary in 1603.
Elizabeth Bartley {Castlevania ₁₉₈₆}
Elizabeth Bartley de Ecsed (August 7 1560 - August 21 1614; as a vampire, <1911 - March 17 1917) was a Hungarian noblewoman and serial killer infamous for abducting as many as 650 victims, all women and most of them young, so that she could literally bathe in their blood in an effort to achieve immortality after learning of and misunderstanding the phenomena of Lazarus Pits. {DC Comics} She was eventually caught and executed for her crimes. Nearly three hundred years later, she was brought back from the dead as a nosferatu by the witch Drolta Tzuentes. Bartley inserted herself into the Unification or Death secret society, otherwise known as the Black Hand, shortly after its inception with the alias "Medusa" and used their plans to form a Yugoslavic state to her own ends: by enabling the assassination of Franz Ferdinand, Europe was thrown into chaos, which she would use to bring Dracula (who had been killed a quarter-century earlier) back to life, but she was stopped by John Morris and Eric Lecarde.
Ishido Mitsunari {The Asian Saga ₁₉₆₂}
Ishido Mitsunai (1559 - November 6 1600) was a samurai and military commander of the late Sengoku period, probably best-remembered as commander of the Western Army at the Battle of Sekigahara.
Toda Mariko {The Asian Saga ₁₉₆₂}
Toda Mariko (1563 - August 25 1600; baptized as Maria) was a rare female samurai as well as a Japanese Christian and the daughter of Akechi Jinsai.
Toda Buntaro {The Asian Saga ₁₉₆₂}
Toda Buntaro (November 28 1563 - January 18 1646) was the eldest son of Toda Hiromatsu.
John Blackthorne {The Asian Saga ₁₉₆₂}
John Blackthorne (September 24 1564 - May 16 1620; called Anjin by the Japanese) was an English navigator, supposedly the "first English pilot to ever get through Magellan's Pass" while manning the Dutch ship Erasmus, who was captured and imprisoned upon his arrival in Japan. He was taken in by Yoshinaga Toranaga as an asset against his rival Ishido Mitsunari for national control. Blackthorne eventually integrated into Japanese culture, almost exclusively using the name Anjin, and became a shipwright for Toranaga as well as participating in the destruction of Osaka Castle.
Ochiba {The Asian Saga ₁₉₆₂}
Ochiba (1569 - June 4 1615) was a Japanese concubine and the second wife of Toyotomi Nakamura and the mother of his son Yaemon, though it is greatly contested to this day if Yaemon was actually Nakamura's son--even Ochiba was not entirely sure, but Nakamura accepted him into the succession regardless.
Sudara {The Asian Saga ₁₉₆₂}
Sudara Toranaga (May 2 1579 - March 14 1632) was the second Shogun of the Toranaga dynasty and third son of Yoshinaga Toranaga, ruling from 1605 until his abdication in 1623.
Naga {The Asian Saga ₁₉₆₂}
Naga Toranaga (October 18 1583 - October 15 1603) was one of Yoshinaga Toranaga's sons, charged with the care of the Anayama of Kai following the destruction of the Takeda clan, of which he was also descended. Sickly from birth, Naga died just three days short of twenty years and the Takeda clan was completely extinguished.
Yaemon {The Asian Saga ₁₉₆₂}
Toyotomi Yaemon (September 8 1593; date of death unclear) was the son and successor of Nakamura, the first man to unify Japan.
Hassling-Ketling {Sienkiewicz's The Trilogy ₁₈₈₄}
Hassling-Ketling of Elgin (died 1687; dates unknown) was a Scottish mercenary who entered the service of John II Casimir of Poland.
Benjamin Avery {The Pyrates ₁₉₈₃}
Benjamin Avery (baptized August 23 1659 - disappeared 1696) was an English pirate active in the Atlantic and Indian Oceans in the mid-1690s, also known as the Arch Pirate and King of the Pirates by his contemporaries, and was one of the few pirates to retired with his loot without being arrested or killed in battle. Though he was only active for two years, he was so successful and famous that many followed in his footsteps, signalling the start of the Golden Age of Piracy. Avery vanishes from all records in 1696 and it is unclear exactly what became of him.
Robinson Crusoe {Robinson Crusoe ₁₇₁₉}
Robinson Crusoe (c. 1676 - December 13 1721; born Robinson Kreutznaer) was a privateer for the Royal Navy who was notable for becoming marooned for twenty-eight years before finally being rescued.
William Tavington {The Patriot ₂₀₀₀}
William Tavington, 1st Baronet, (August 21 1754 - January 17 1781) was a British soldier and politician known for his service during the American War of Independence and controversial for his purported crimes as leaders of the British Legion (also known as the Green Dragoons) which massacred surrendering American soldiers at the Battle of Waxhaws in 1780. Other sources, however, claim that he committed other atrocities before then, including the burning of a church fulls of townspeople who had been supporting his chief opponent, Benjamin Martin. In the midst of the Battle of Cowpens, Tavington engaged Martin in single combat and was ultimately killed by him.
Percy Blakeney {The Scarlet Pimpernel ₁₉₀₅}
Percy Blakeney (November 11 1761 - October 22 1840) was an English baronet who infiltrated France numerous times during the Reign of Terror to rescue aristocrats sentenced to death by guillotine with the secret identity of the Scarlet Pimpernel and the help of a network of various contacts. In his time, Blakeney was seen as just another fop while his Scarlet Pimpernel persona was a daring hero to the British and their allies while to the French he was a master criminal who taunted their government by leaving calling cards of a simple scarlet pimpernel flower. The Scarlet Pimpernel was one of the most famous men in Europe in his time, all but vanishing after the end of the French Revolution, though there were purported sightings of him through to the middle of the 19th century. Blakeney took his secret identity to the grave and was not exposed as the Scarlet Pimpernel until the 20th century when journals belonging to him and his wife Marguerite were released to the public, and was popularized by Emma Orczy's 1903 play based on him.
Jin-Qua {The Asian Saga ₁₉₆₂}
Jin-Qua (1769 - September 4 1843) was once the richest man in the world, the most important merchant in the Thirteen Factories of Guangzhou in China.
Dirk Struan {The Asian Saga ₁₉₆₂}
Dirk Lochlin Struan (February 24 1784 - July 21 1841) was the head of Struan & Company, the premier private trading company of 19th century Asia.
Robb Struan {The Asian Saga ₁₉₆₂}
Robb Struan, 1st Baronet (October 17 1796 - December 31 1878)
Edie Ochiltree {The Antiquary ₁₈₁₆}
Edie Ochiltree (18th century; dates unknown)
Marius Pontmercy {Les Misérables ₁₈₆₂}
Marius Pontmercy (February 26 1802 - May 22 1885)
Shevaun Tillman {The Asian Saga ₁₉₆₂}
Shevaun Tillman (May 18 1809 - 1877)
Grigory Alexandrovich Pechorin {A Hero of Our Time ₁₈₄₀}
Grigory Alexandrovich Pechorin (October 15 1814 - July 27 1841)
Quentin Trembly {Gravity Falls ₂₀₁₂}
Quentin Trembly (February 9 1814 - August 4 1886)
Willy Wonka {Charlie and the Chocolate Factory ₁₉₆₄}
Willy Wonka (August 10 1814 - July 7 1890) was a Swiss confection magnate widely considered the most talented choclatier in history, developing many candies and other sweets which seemingly defied the laws of nature and physics. After a mass leak of confidential information, Wonka fired all the workers at his factory in Vevey, Switzerland, and closed it down. Soon, though, locals began noticing that the factory was apparently in operation again despite no one being seen entering or leaving it. The truth came out in 1875 when Wonka suddenly held a contest in which five golden tickets were randomly distributed with Wonka chocolate bars, leading to a worldwide chocolate craze as people tried to find the tickets. At the end of the contest, it turned out that five children had acquired the tickets and the last to be announced, one Charlie Bucket, was eventually declared the winner and was made beneficiary of Wonka's company, inheriting it when Wonka passed away ten years later.
Marie Rogêt {The Mystery of Marie Rogêt ₁₈₄₂}
Marie Rogêt (c. 1820 - found July 28 1841) was a Parisian perfume shop employee best-known for her death, having been found in the Seine River under mysterious circumstances. Her death was investigated by the legendary detective C. Auguste Dupin, who determined that she had been dragged around by a cloth tied to her waist, killed with a cloth around her neck, and that her body was dumped into the river from a boat, suggesting that finding the boat would lead them to the murderer.
Shishio Makoto {Rurouni Kenshin ₁₉₉₄}
Shishio Makoto (August 1848 - 1879; dates unknown)
Zorro {Zorro stories ₁₉₁₉}
Diego de la Vega (c. 1829 - July 25 1853; also known as Zorro)