A Northern individual contemplating the message of Christian peace during the brutal years of the American Civil War. The speaker initially takes comfort in the familiar holiday carols ringing from local churches but soon descends into despair upon hearing the destructive sounds of cannon fire from the South. Caught between faith and the harsh reality of violent national conflict, the speaker seeks a way to reconcile the two.

A celebrated American poet, professor, and abolitionist living in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Known for his musical verse and moral subject matter, he experiences profound personal tragedies in the early 1860s, including the horrific loss of his second wife in a fire. He relies heavily on writing to process his intense grief and to articulate his continued hope for a unified nation free of slavery.

The beloved second wife of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow and mother to several of his children. After initially rejecting Longfellow's proposal, she later marries him and settles into a comfortable life in Cambridge. Her fatal accident involving a dress catching fire fractures Longfellow's personal life and heavily influences the sorrow expressed in his later poetry.

The eldest son of Henry and Fanny Longfellow. Against his pacifist father's wishes, he secretly enlists as a Union lieutenant in the American Civil War. He sustains heavy battle injuries, requiring his father to travel to Washington, D.C., to nurse him—the direct historical catalyst for the composition of "Christmas Bells."

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's first wife. She travels with him to Europe while he studies Scandinavian languages to prepare for a professorship. She suffers a miscarriage that results in fatal health complications, dying in Germany at the age of 22.

An American traveler and the father of Fanny Longfellow. He plays a supportive role in his daughter's eventual marriage by purchasing the historic Craigie-Longfellow house in Cambridge as a wedding present for the couple.

The divine presence referenced in the Christmas carols and the overarching faith system of the poem. Though momentarily doubted by the speaker due to the horrors of the Civil War, this divine figure represents the ultimate assurance that righteousness and peace will eventually triumph over hatred.