''Charité'' is a German drama television series. The first season was directed by

Sönke Wortmann Sönke Wortmann (; 25 August 1959 in Marl, North Rhine-Westphalia) is a German film director and producer. Biography Wortmann's father was a miner. After Wortmann's A-Levels he wanted to become a professional football player and started playin ...

, and was written by

Grimme-Preis The Grimme-Preis ("Grimme Award"; prior to 2011: Adolf-Grimme-Preis) is one of the most prestigious German television awards. It is named after the first general director of Nordwestdeutscher Rundfunk, Adolf Grimme.Dorothee Schön and Sabine Thor-Wiedemann. The season is set during 1888 and the years following at

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and List of cities in Germany by population, largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's List of cities in the European Union by population within ci ...

's Charité hospital. The series premiered on 21 March 2017 on the German channel Das Erste, and was distributed in the USA and UK on

Netflix Netflix, Inc. is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service and production company based in Los Gatos, California. Founded in 1997 by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph in Scotts Valley, California, it offers a fi ...

between April 2018 and June 2022. A second series went into production in November 2017, and first aired in Germany in February 2019. This season is directed by

Anno Saul Anno Saul (born 14 November 1963) is a German screenwriter and film director. Biography Born in Bonn, West Germany, the son of a physician, Saul studied at the Peter-Joerres-Gymnasium in Bad Neuenahr-Ahrweiler and afterwards, graduating from ...

and was also written by Schön and Thor-Wiedemann. It is set in the years from 1943 to 1945. The cast was replaced with an entirely new set of actors because of the many years elapsed in the storyline. This second series began streaming on Netflix in North America in mid-2019 as ''Charité at War''. Season 3 launched on ARD and Netflix Germany on 12 January 2021. The season is set in 1961, the same year that construction began on the Berlin Wall.

Cast

Season 1

Alicia von Rittberg Alicia Gräfin (''Countess'') von Rittberg (born 10 December 1993) is a German actress. Following numerous roles in German films and television series, she came to attention outside Germany for her brief role as Emma in the 2014 film '' Fury''. R ...

as Ida Lenze, a patient and recipient of a life-saving operation who becomes an indentured medical assistant for the hospital. * as Georg Tischendorf, a medical student who wishes to be an artist *

Justus von Dohnányi Justus von Dohnányi (born 2 December 1960) is a German actor, best known for portraying Wilhelm Burgdorf in 2004 film ''Der Untergang''. Life and career Born in Lübeck, von Dohnányi is the son of conductor Christoph von Dohnányi and actress ...

Robert Koch Heinrich Hermann Robert Koch ( , ; 11 December 1843 – 27 May 1910) was a German physician and microbiologist. As the discoverer of the specific causative agents of deadly infectious diseases including tuberculosis, cholera (though the bacteri ...

, a revolutionary bacteriologist, who's recently returned from India *

Matthias Koeberlin Matthias Koeberlin (born 28 March 1974, Mainz Mainz () is the capital and largest city of Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. Mainz is on the left bank of the Rhine, opposite to the place that the Main joins the Rhine. Downstream of the conf ...

as Emil Behring, an ambitious doctor with an opium addiction * Christoph Bach as

Paul Ehrlich Paul Ehrlich (; 14 March 1854 – 20 August 1915) was a Nobel Prize-winning German physician and scientist who worked in the fields of hematology, immunology, and antimicrobial chemotherapy. Among his foremost achievements were finding a cure ...

, a Jewish doctor with tuberculosis. *

Ernst Stötzner Ernst Stötzner (born 1952) is a German actor. He has appeared in more than sixty films since 1983. Selected filmography References External links * 1952 births Living people German male film actors {{Germany-actor-stub ...

Rudolf Virchow Rudolf Ludwig Carl Virchow (; or ; 13 October 18215 September 1902) was a German physician, anthropologist, pathologist, prehistorian, biologist, writer, editor, and politician. He is known as "the father of modern pathology" and as the founder ...

, a professor and head of pathology. *

Matthias Brenner Matthias Brenner (born 10 September 1957) is a German actor, director and writer. Matthias Brenner was born in Meiningen, Bezirk Suhl, East Germany, the son of actor Carl Rüdiger Brenner (1924–1984). He spent his childhood there.

Ernst von Bergmann Ernst Gustav Benjamin von Bergmann (16 December 1836 – 25 March 1907) was a Baltic German surgeon. He was the first physician to introduce heat sterilisation of surgical instruments and is known as a pioneer of aseptic surgery. Biography Bo ...

, a surgeon * as * Emilia Schüle as Hedwig Freiberg, an actress with an almost-obsessive interest in bacteriology and particularly Robert Koch. * Ramona Kunze-Libnow as Matron Martha, the devout matron of the nurses at Charité. * Klara Deutschmann as Sister Therese, a recently promoted nurse and friend of Ida * Tanja Schleiff as Nurse Edith, a nurse with unionization aspirations * Monika Oschek as Nurse Stine, a nurse who comes down with diphtheria * Daniel Sträßer as Heinrich von Minckwitz, a reporter for the Berlin Daily * Greta Bohacek as Mariechen * Stella Hilb as Hedda Ehrlich * Lucas Prisor as

Kaiser Wilhelm II , house = Hohenzollern , father = Frederick III, German Emperor , mother = Victoria, Princess Royal , religion = Lutheranism (Prussian United) , signature = Wilhelm II, German Emperor Signature-.svg Wilhelm II (Friedrich Wilhelm Viktor ...

* Runa Greiner as Else Spinola * Rosa Enskat as Emmi Koch * Yusuke Yamasaki as

Kitasato Shibasaburō Baron was a Japanese physician and bacteriologist. He is remembered as the co-discoverer of the infectious agent of bubonic plague in Hong Kong during an outbreak in 1894, almost simultaneously with Alexandre Yersin. Kitasato was nominate ...

, a Japanese bacteriological working with Robert Koch. * Michael Pitthan as Arthur Conan Doyle * Thomas Zielinski as Carl Hagenbeck

Season 2

* Mala Emde as Anni Waldhausen, a medical student, studying eugenics under De Crinis and writing a dissertation on self-mutilation; an expectant mother *

Ulrich Noethen Ulrich Noethen (born 18 November 1959) is a German actor who has appeared in many movies and TV films. He starred in ''Comedian Harmonists''. He also played Heinrich Himmler twice, in ''Der Untergang'' and ''Mein Führer – Die wirklich wahrst ...

Ferdinand Sauerbruch Ernst Ferdinand Sauerbruch (; 3 July 1875 – 2 July 1951) was a German surgeon. His major work was on the use of negative-pressure chambers for surgery. Biography Sauerbruch was born in Barmen (now a district of Wuppertal), Germany. He ...

, a pioneering surgeon and the head of surgery at Charité *

Jannik Schümann Jannik Schümann (; born 22 July, 1992) is a German actor. He received three Jupiter Awards for Best Actor, for his role of Danny in '' Close to the Horizon'' (2020), ''9 Days Awake'' (2021), and the role of Franz Joseph I. in ''Sisi'' (2022). ...

as Otto Marquardt, a medical student, to be sent to the Russian front, closely-aligned with Ferdinand * Luise Wolfram as Margot Sauerbruch, Ferdinand's wife * Artjom Gilz as Artur Waldhausen, Anni's husband, working for De Crinis, euthenising "unwanted children" *

Jacob Matschenz Jacob Matschenz (born 1984, Berlin) is a German actor. He is notable for film and television work including '' The Wave'' (2008), '' 12 Paces Without a Head'' (2009) and ''The Sinking of the Laconia'' (2010). He won the Adolf Grimme Award Th ...

as Martin Schelling, a doctor with a prosthetic leg, works for Ferdinand and is especially close to Otto. * Frida-Lovisa Hamann as Nurse Christel, a nurse who still believes in Germany's "ultimate victory" * Susanne Böwe as Nurse Käthe, a matron nurse * Lukas Miko as Max de Crinis, a surgeon general high-ranking in the NSDAP; a staunch proponent of eugenics and heading up

Aktion T4 (German, ) was a campaign of mass murder by involuntary euthanasia in Nazi Germany. The term was first used in post- war trials against doctors who had been involved in the killings. The name T4 is an abbreviation of 4, a street address o ...

Hans Löw Hans may refer to: __NOTOC__ People * Hans (name), a masculine given name * Hans Raj Hans, Indian singer and politician ** Navraj Hans, Indian singer, actor, entrepreneur, cricket player and performer, son of Hans Raj Hans ** Yuvraj Hans, Punjabi ...

as Adolphe Jung ( de), an immigrant doctor who hides his dislike of the NSDAP * Sarah Bauerett as Maria Fritsch ( de), an American spy along Fritz Kolbe *

Marek Harloff Marek Harloff (born 22 April 1971) is a German actor. He appeared in more than seventy films since 1984. Selected filmography References External links * 1971 births Living people German male film actors {{Germany-actor-stub ...

Fritz Kolbe Fritz Kolbe (25 September 1900 – 16 February 1971) was a German diplomat who became a spy against the Nazis in World War II. Early life Kolbe was born on 25 September 1900 in Berlin to middle-class parents. His father was a saddle maker. Th ...

, an American spy with Maria Fritsch * Peter Kremer as Georg Bessau ( de), a professor who softly champions the involuntary euthanasia program *

Katharina Heyer Katharina is a feminine given name. It is a German form of Katherine. It may refer to: In television and film: *Katharina Bellowitsch, Austrian radio and TV presenter * Katharina Mückstein, Austrian film director *Katharina Thalbach, German actr ...

Magda Goebbels Johanna Maria Magdalena "Magda" Goebbels (née Ritschel; 11 November 1901 – 1 May 1945) was the wife of Nazi Germany's Propaganda Minister Joseph Goebbels. A prominent member of the Nazi Party, she was a close ally, companion, and politic ...

, Joseph Goebbels's wife * Maximilian Klas as

Peter Sauerbruch Peter Sauerbruch (5 June 1913 – 29 September 2010) was a highly decorated Oberstleutnant i.G. in the Wehrmacht during World War II. He was also a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross. Awards and decorations * Iron Cross (1939) ** ...

, Ferdinand and Margot's son * Pierre Kiwitt as

Claus von Stauffenberg Colonel Claus Philipp Maria Justinian Schenk Graf von Stauffenberg (; 15 November 1907 – 21 July 1944) was a German army officer best known for his failed attempt on 20 July 1944 to assassinate Adolf Hitler at the Wolf's Lair. Despite ...

, a soldier who served alongside Peter * Max von Pufendorf as

Hans von Dohnányi Hans von Dohnanyi (; originally ''Johann von Dohnányi'' ; 1 January 1902 – 8 or 9 April 1945) was a German jurist. He used his position in the Abwehr to help Jews escape Germany, worked with German resistance against the Nazi régim ...

, a severely-ill patient of Ferdinand's * Anja Schneider as Christine von Dohnanyi, Hans's wife * Thomas Neumann as

Karl Bonhoeffer Karl Bonhoeffer (; March 31, 1868 – December 4, 1948) was a German neurologist, psychiatrist and physician. Life Bonhoeffer was born in Neresheim in the Kingdom of Württemberg to Friedrich von Bonhoeffer (1828–1907), who worked as judg ...

, De Crinis's predecessor * Ludwig Simon as Paul Lohmann, a patient at Charité suspected of having self-inflicted a gunshot wound

Season 3

* Nina Gummich as Ella Wendt *

Nina Kunzendorf Nina Kunzendorf (born November 10, 1971) is a German actress. Her credits include the television series ''Tatort'' and the films ''Phoenix'', '' Woman in Gold'' and '' Unspoken''. Early life Kunzendorf was born in Mannheim, Baden-Württemberg ...

as Ingeborg Rapoport *

Philipp Hochmair Philipp Hochmair (German: �fɪǀɪp ˈhoːxmɑɪɐ; born 16 October 1973) is an Austrian theater, film and television actor. Early life Hochmair grew up in Vienna (Austria) where he discovered his passion for literature, film and theater. ...

as Otto Prokop *

Uwe Ochsenknecht Uwe Adam Ochsenknecht (; born 7 January 1956) is a German actor and singer. Career Films Ochsenknecht has starred in include '' Das Boot'' (1981), ''Schtonk!'' (1992), and the TV miniseries '' Frank Herbert's Dune'' (2000). In the early 1990 ...

as Helmut Kraatz * Max Wagner as Alexander Nowack *

Franz Hartwig Franz Hartwig (born 1986) is a German actor. Life He was born in Dresden.He lives in Berlin. Selected filmography * 2019: ''Der Pass'' (TV series) as Gregor Ansbach * 2021: ' (TV film) as Georg Kelz References External links * * ...

as Curt Bruncken *

Patricia Meeden Patricia is a female given name of Latin origin. Derived from the Latin word '' patrician'', meaning "noble"; it is the feminine form of the masculine given name Patrick. The name Patricia was the second most common female name in the United Stat ...

as nurse Ariana * Amber Bongard as nurse Petra * Hildegard Schroedter as head nurse Gerda * Uwe Preuss as janitor Fritz Krug * Timo Meitner as assistant Wittenberg * Anatole Taubmann as Mitja Rapoport * Nicholas Reinke as party secretary Lehmann * Peter Miklusz as Hajo Brennscheidt * Christian Beermann as captain Hertweck

Episodes

Series 1 (2017)

Between breakthroughs in medical research and enormous social upheavals in 1888, the Charité is well on its way to becoming the most famous hospital in the world. It is a city within the city, following its own laws and rules. At the beginning of the Wilhelmine Period, up to 4,000 patients are treated annually. Along with the expected injuries caused by the booming Industrialization, patients suffer from infectious diseases such as tuberculosis, diphtheria, typhoid and cholera, as well as from sexually transmitted diseases. In addition, there are many medical students, taught at the Berlin University, who are being trained in this famous hospital by the future Nobel Prize winners and most prestigious doctors of the time: Rudolf Virchow, the founder of the modern health care systems, Robert Koch, the discoverer of the tuberculosis bacillus, Emil von Behring, whose work contributed greatly to the healing of diphtheria, and Paul Ehrlich, who developed the first drug against syphilis.

Series 2 (2019)

In 1943, more and more patients are admitted into the Berlin Charité due to

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

. The hospital is still considered a focal point for medicine, but the staff is divided since some members do not support the regime while others are staunch followers of the government. One of the best known doctors at the Charité is

, a surgeon practicing there since 1928. He became world-famous in the 1930s by developing innovative surgical techniques which greatly decreased the risks of operations at the time. He was also responsible for inventing new types of prostheses which improved the mobility of a patient's remaining muscle. He seems to become more and more critical of the Nazi regime as World War II progresses, which makes him clash with several of his colleagues. One of them is Max de Crinis, a psychiatrist. He is a high-ranking member of the SS who greatly supports the government. Unlike Sauerbruch, De Crinis is also an avid proponent of the country's euthanasia programmes, some of which are carried out at the Charité.

Series 3 (2021)

References

External links

* {{IMDb title , 5337806 , Charité
Charité on Global Screen
2017 German television series debuts German drama television series German documentary television series 2010s German television miniseries English-language television shows Charité German medical television series Television series set in the 1880s Television series set in the 1890s Television shows set in Berlin 2010s LGBT-related drama television series