Character Relationship Map: Valkyrie

Characters

• Henning von Tresckow (played by Kenneth Branagh) — protagonist

  General who unsuccessfully attempts to assassinate Hitler with a timebomb on the Eastern Front. Actively recruits Stauffenberg into the German Resistance. At the end of the failed coup, he takes his o...

• Friedrich Olbricht (played by Bill Nighy) — supporting

  General who recruits Stauffenberg into the resistance and supports using Operation Valkyrie for the coup. Initially refuses to mobilize troops without confirming Hitler's death. Arrested at the Bendle...

• Ludwig Beck (played by Terence Stamp) — supporting

  General and key member of the German Resistance. Informs Goerdeler about the SS arrest warrant. When arrested by Fromm, he is permitted to commit suicide rather than face execution.

• Friedrich Fromm (played by Tom Wilkinson) — supporting

  Head of the Reserve Army. Declines to join the coup but initially agrees to stay silent. After learning Hitler survived, he arrests the plotters, convenes an impromptu court-martial, permits Beck's su...

• Erwin von Witzleben (played by David Schofield) — minor
• Colonel Heinz Brandt (played by Tom Hollander) — minor
• Otto Ernst Remer (played by Thomas Kretschmann) — supporting

  Major commanding the Berlin Guard Battalion. Initially ordered to arrest Goebbels, but after being put on the phone with Hitler, he realizes the coup is failed and turns against the plotters, helping...

• Heinrich Himmler (played by Matthias Freihof) — cameo

Canonical Relationships

Family, romantic, and professional connections based on plot evidence.

• Heinrich Himmler → Friedrich Fromm (Power Rival) — Their separate positions within the Nazi power structure affect the coup's viability.

  The July 15 operation cannot proceed because Himmler is absent, while Fromm controls the Reserve Army and refuses to participate.

• Friedrich Olbricht → Friedrich Fromm (Professional Subordinate Commander) — Olbricht operates within the military structure headed by Fromm.

  Fromm is the head of the Reserve Army, while Olbricht mobilizes that army as part of the Valkyrie operation.

Story Dynamics

Alliances, conflicts, and narrative interactions that evolve throughout the story.

• Colonel Heinz Brandt → Friedrich Olbricht (Conflict Unwitting Coup Obstacle) — His accidental action undermines the coup operation supported by Olbricht.

  Brandt's movement of the bomb helps Hitler survive, which prevents Olbricht's planned mobilization from proceeding with certainty.

• Colonel Heinz Brandt → Henning von Tresckow (Conflict Unwitting Obstruction) — Brandt unintentionally compromises the resistance's assassination plan.

  Brandt moves the bomb briefcase behind a table leg, inadvertently shielding Hitler during the assassination attempt organized by the resistance.

• Heinrich Himmler → Henning von Tresckow (Conflict Regime Adversary) — They stand on opposite sides of the attempted overthrow of Nazi rule.

  Himmler is part of the regime targeted by the resistance plot, while Tresckow is a leading resistance conspirator.

• Otto Ernst Remer → Friedrich Fromm (Alliance Military Countercoup Participant) — Both support the suppression of the failed Valkyrie operation.

  After learning that Hitler survived, Remer turns against the plotters and helps secure their arrest, while Fromm also rejects the coup and arrests its...

• Erwin von Witzleben → Friedrich Fromm (Conflict Coup Opponent) — Fromm's actions contribute to the defeat and prosecution of Witzleben's resistance faction.

  Witzleben is among the plotters defeated after Fromm takes control, and Witzleben is later hanged after a show trial.

• Ludwig Beck → Erwin von Witzleben (Alliance Resistance Ally) — They are senior figures within the same anti-Nazi network.

  Beck and Witzleben are both named as members of the German Resistance.

• Ludwig Beck → Friedrich Fromm (Conflict Arrested Rival) — Fromm controls Beck's fate after the conspiracy collapses.

  Fromm arrests Beck after refusing to join the plot and permits him to commit suicide.

• Friedrich Olbricht → Ludwig Beck (Alliance Resistance Colleague) — They cooperate within the resistance leadership against the Nazi regime.

  Olbricht and Beck are both identified as key members of the German Resistance.

• Henning von Tresckow → Friedrich Fromm (Conflict Opposing Military Leaders) — Their positions diverge decisively when Fromm rejects the failed coup.

  Fromm refuses to join the coup after learning that Hitler survived, while Tresckow remains one of the resistance plotters.

• Henning von Tresckow → Erwin von Witzleben (Alliance Resistance Ally) — They are connected through the anti-Nazi conspiracy.

  Tresckow and Witzleben are both listed among the resistance plotters.

• Henning von Tresckow → Ludwig Beck (Alliance Resistance Ally) — They share membership in the military resistance leadership.

  Tresckow and Beck are both named among the members of the German Resistance.

• Henning von Tresckow → Friedrich Olbricht (Alliance Resistance Ally) — They belong to the same resistance network pursuing the overthrow of the Nazi regime.

  Both are identified as members of the German Resistance opposing Hitler's regime and supporting the coup plan.

Story Analysis

A military resistance attempts to overthrow the Nazi regime through an assassination and emergency mobilization, but collapses when Hitler survives.

Plot Progression

1. A Fractured Military Awakens — The resistance suffers failed assassination attempts and arrests. Olbricht recruits a new participant as the conspirators seek a workable strategy.
2. The Valkyrie Gambit — The plotters redesign Operation Valkyrie to seize Germany after an assassination. Fromm refuses active participation, leaving the plan dependent on uncertain loyalties.
3. The Bomb and the Breakthrough — The first attempt is aborted, but the conspirators try again on July 20. Brandt's accidental movement of the briefcase allows Hitler to survive the explosion.
4. Berlin Under False Orders — Valkyrie is initiated through forged authorization, and troops begin occupying ministries. The resistance briefly appears capable of controlling Berlin.
5. The Conspiracy Crushed — Hitler's survival reverses the coup as Remer and Fromm move against the plotters. Arrests, executions, suicides, and later show trials destroy the resistance leadership.