The 10 best historical characters in the Assassin’s Creed series

The Assassin’s Creed series is renowned for its vivid take on historical fiction and for authentically representing various eras of human civilization. That includes portraying various historical characters who had major contributions in reality, as well as the overall plot of the series. The game’s portrayal of these characters varies in depth, behavior, and authenticity. But for now, we have managed to nail down 10 of the best to appear in the Assassin’s Creed series.

Alfred the Great

Alfred of Wessex, or as history would remember him, Alfred the Great, appeared in Assassin’s Creed Valhalla. In the game, he is the King of Wessex, and later, the Anglo-Saxons. In secret though, Alfred was the Grand Maegester of the Order of the Ancients. He is a rival to the Eivor and the Vikings who invaded England in the game. But after seeing the members of the Order worship the Isu, Alfred goes on to form the basis of a new God-fearing order which becomes the Knights Templar and is now known as the Templar Order.

Cesare Borgia

Cesare Borgia is the main antagonist of Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood and is popularly seen as an arch-rival to Ezio Auditore, the legendary Florentine Assassin. He plots to control all of Italy during the events of Brotherhood and acquire the Apple of Eden. Alas, his plans fail as Ezio manages to throw him off a castle to his death. Even though his portrayal of the game was antagonistic, in reality, Cesare was revered as a battle leader and tactician as well as liked by most of the people and his soldiers.

Cleopatra

Cleopatra appeared in Assassin’s Creed Origins firstly, as an ally of Bayek and Aya. She soon tasks them with eliminating members of the Order of Ancients and forging alliances to aid in her support to reclaim the throne of Egypt from her brother Ptolemallies an alliance with Gaius Julius Caesar, becomes the Pharaoh of Egypt, and betrays Bayek and Aya later on. While Aya spares Cleopatra in Origins initially, in the comics, she is later poisoned by Aya willingly and dies.

Edward “Blackbeard” Thatch

Blackbeard, the legendary British Pirate, is one of the most prominent characters to appear in Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag as an ally of Edward Kenway. He aids Edward in his exploits across the vast sea and fights against the British and Spanish Navy. But at one point, they are ambushed by the British, and Blackbeard is killed after uttering one of the iconic lines in the series: “In a world without gold, we might’ve been heroes.”

George Washington

George Washington, the first President of the United States, appears in Assassin’s Creed III and acts as an ally to Connor Kenway. His focus is mainly on liberating America from the British and employs the help of Connor in different moments throughout the game. In the Tyranny of King Washington DLC, he gains the Apple of Eden, gets corrupted by its power, and announces himself the King of America in an alternate timeline. But, Connor soon manages to stop him and keeps the Apple safe.

Jack the Ripper

Jack the Ripper was a serial killer who haunted London during the 1880s with his brutal and vicious murders of women. In Assassin’s Creed Syndicate, he appears in the self-titled expansion of the game set during the time of his murders. In it, Jack is a playable character and was a former member of the Assassin Brotherhood in London, but he overthrows Jacob Frye, and indiscriminately kills those who oppose him. Eventually, Evie puts a stop to him and saves Jacob, and manages to hide his true identity as a former Assassin.

Leonardo Da Vinci

Who can forget Leonardo Da Vinci? The famous painter and sculptor appear in Assassin’s Creed II and Brotherhood where he helps Ezio by making forging various Assassin equipment and decrypting Codex pages, most notably the Hidden Blade. Ezio also helped Leonardo in his various experiments including flying across Venice with his flying machine.

Maximilien Robespierre

While he doesn’t appear as much of a threatening villain in Assassin’s Creed Unity, Maximillien Robespierre is surely a notable character in the game. During the events of the game, he is inducted into the Templars by Francois-Thomas Germain. Known as the architect behind the Reign of Terror, he guillotined a huge number of counter-revolutionaries, civilians, and even his allies. But all his ambitions failed when Arno Dorian and Elise de La Serre handed him over to the army with Elise shooting him in the jaw. Later on, he becomes a victim of the guillotine himself.

Niccolo Machiavelli

One of the most celebrated and well-known political philosophers of all time, Niccolo Machiavelli appears in Assassin’s Creed II and Brotherhood. He is a member of the Assassins Brotherhood in Italy and is one of the people who formally induct Ezio into the Brotherhood. While his role in Assassin’s Creed II is short, he has a major part in Brotherhood as he aids Ezio in his fight against Caesar Borgia.

Related: How to play the Assassin’s Creed games in order – chronological and release orders

Socrates

One of the most influential and if not, the most influential Western political thinkers of all time, Socrates appears in Assassin’s Creed Odyssey. He meets the player (Alexios/Kassandra) while he is in a heated debate with another political thinker, Thrasymachus, a Sophist. He then proceeds to ask them various questions about their beliefs using the Socratic method of questioning. Every interaction with Socrates leads to him asking the player various questions which shows quite a bit about his personality.