King Edward VII
Although the book begins with his funeral, King Edward is not a prominent figure throughout. His death marks the beginning of the events which trigger WWI. Basically, in his absence the lineage to the British throne becomes complicated by Kaiser Wilhelm's relationship to Edward.
Kaiser Wilhelm
He is King Edward's nephew and the ruler of Germany. Upon his uncle's death, he anticipates succeeding him as king of England, but this sparks a debate among the nations' leaders. Nobody desires to see Wilhelm ruler of both England and Germany. After war breaks, out the Kaiser takes it upon himself to preserve good relations between his country and England, but he does eventually enter Germany in the war in order to oppose Russia.
Gavrilo Princip
He is a Serbian national, distraught by the deteriorating economic situation in his homeland. He visits Austria and there plans and executes the assassination of the heir to that nation's throne. Since this is a war crime, he initiates WWI.
Charles Lanrezac
He is a French military commander during the war. He manages to save most of the French troops by acting decisively to withdraw from Charleroi, despite having not received permission to do so. Although he is threatened for disobeying orders, his commanders could hardly argue with the success of his plan.
Joseph Gallieni
Gallieni is the French commander at Paris. When the Russians push back the Allies to the city gates, Gallieni is the one who conserves resources so well as to avoid a siege, which would have surely marked the city's demise.
