Character guide

Alexander Hamilton

major

Also known as Hamilton, Alexander, Citizen Hamilton, Colonel Hamilton, Mr. Hamilton, R. Hamilton

Hamilton is the Republic's indispensable man — soldier, orator, financial architect — whose enemies circle his private life as a way to break his public power. His courage, rooted in love of truth and honorable dealing, collides with the ruinous consequences of an old indiscretion, and his devotion to his wife Betsy wars with the ambition that keeps him chained to his country's service. The play turns on how he answers his accusers, making his honesty both his weapon and his wound.

Betsy Hamilton

major

Also known as Betsy, Elizabeth, Mis' Betsy, Betsy Angelica, Betsy Reynolds, Mrs. Hamilton

A daughter of General Schuyler, Betsy has chosen love over luxury, dusting her own panes and defending her husband's refusal to take a penny from her father. She is proud of his ambitions yet starved for his time, and her cheerful frugality masks a fear of what his absences and unexplained expenses might mean. When scandal finally reaches her door, her loyalty becomes the story's most painful test.

Angelica Schuyler

supporting

Also known as Angelica, Schuyler, Angelica Betsy

Angelica is the household's witty provocateur, kissing Hamilton hello, mocking his vanity, and pressing Betsy on why a Schuyler daughter should live on three thousand dollars a year. She loves her sister fiercely but cannot resist needling the couple about ambition, money, and the husband who puts the Republic before his family. Her blunt observations give voice to doubts Betsy will not speak aloud.

Giles

supporting

Also known as Mr. Giles, Citizen Giles, the trusty Giles

Giles moves through the play's margins as a confidant and observer, the kind of figure who hears what others say when they think no one important is listening. His loyalty and dry asides provide ballast against the grand rhetoric of statesmen, grounding the household drama in ordinary human judgment. He matters as a witness — someone whose presence reminds the audience that reputations are made and unmade before servants as well as senators.

Zekiel

supporting

Also known as Schuyler, Uncle Zeke, Sentah Monroe

Zekiel opens doors, admits visitors, and moves through the Hamilton home with the easy familiarity of a trusted retainer. His brief exchanges — announcing General Schuyler, tending the household — anchor the play's domestic scenes in lived texture. He matters as the silent witness to the private life that Hamilton's enemies will later drag into public view.

James Reynolds

supporting

Also known as Reynolds, Jim, one James Reynolds

Reynolds is the shadowy husband at the center of the scandal that threatens to destroy Hamilton's career and marriage. His dealings — part blackmail, part betrayal — turn private weakness into public ammunition, and his name becomes the byword for the trap Hamilton cannot escape. He matters because he is the mechanism by which the play's central question — whether honesty can survive exposure — is forced into the open.

Maria Reynolds

supporting

Also known as Mrs. Reynolds, Betsy Reynolds

Pretty, older, and hungry for a position she has never had, she sets out to catch Hamilton and finds herself genuinely caught instead.

Thomas Jefferson

supporting

Also known as Jefferson, Mr. Jefferson, Tom Jefferson

A rival statesman whose clash with Hamilton over policy and influence turns private scandal into a weapon of public destruction.

John Jay

supporting

Also known as Jay, Judge Jay, Chief Justice Jay

The Chief Justice whose legal gravity and public standing make him a quiet but decisive presence in the battles surrounding Hamilton.

Tallyrand

minor

Also known as Count Tallyrand, Citizen Tallyrand

A foreign diplomat or visitor, interacting with the main characters.

General Philip Schuyler

minor

Also known as General Schuyler, Schuyler, Enter General Schuyler R.

Father of Angelica and Betsy, a respected military figure.

Melissa

minor

Also known as First Man Melissa

A minor character, possibly a servant or visitor.

Cunnel

minor

Also known as Marse Cunnel

A dialect-speaking character, likely a servant or rural figure.

James Monroe

supporting

Also known as Monroe, Senator Monroe, Mr. Monroe

A political opponent whose investigation of Hamilton's private affairs threatens to drag a founding father's secrets into the open.

George Washington

minor

Also known as Washington, General Washington, President Washington

Former president and general, a respected elder statesman.

John Church

minor

Also known as John

A friend or associate of Hamilton, appearing in social scenes.

Mrs. Whalen

minor

A minor character, possibly a housekeeper or neighbor.

Colonel Lear

minor

Also known as Lear

A military aide or associate, appearing in a few scenes.

Robert Livingston

minor

A historical figure mentioned or appearing briefly.