Count Ilya Rostov A gregarious, good-natured, and generous family man whose interest in maintaining his family's pleasures contributes to his financial ruination.
Countess Natalya Rostov His wife, a typical Russian noblewoman, whose main interests center within the family.
Natasha Rostov The heroine of the novel and a bewitching young girl whom Tolstoy regards as the creature-manifestation of love, nature, and femininity.
Nikolay Rostov The oldest son, who is an officer in the hussars and who later marries Marya Bolkonsky. He is an unimaginative young man who believes that doing one's duty is the highest virtue of the individual.
Vera Rostov The eldest child, who marries Alphonse Berg, an opportunistic youth of German descent.
Petya Rostov The youngest child, whose vivacity is closest to that of Natasha and who dies prematurely near the end of the war.
Sonya The Rostov's poor relation whom they raise with their own children. She devotes her life to loving Nikolay but never marries him.
Boris Drubetskoy Son of a friend of Countess Rostov who has been educated with the Rostov children. Boris becomes important in court circles and is a career-man in the army.
