''The Rebels'' is a

historical novel Historical fiction is a literary genre in which the plot takes place in a setting related to the past events, but is fictional. Although the term is commonly used as a synonym for historical fiction literature, it can also be applied to other ty ...

written by

John Jakes John William Jakes (born March 31, 1932) is an American writer, best known for American historical and speculative fiction. His Civil War trilogy, ''North and South'', has sold millions of copies worldwide. He is also the author of The Kent Famil ...

, originally published in 1975, the second in a series known as

The Kent Family Chronicles The Kent Family Chronicles (also known as The American Bicentennial Series) is a series of eight novels by John Jakes written for Lyle Engel of Book Creations, Inc. to commemorate the 200th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence of the Unit ...

or the American Bicentennial Series. The novel mixes fictional characters with historical events and figures, to narrate the story of the nascent

United States of America The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territo ...

during the time of the

American Revolution The American Revolution was an ideological and political revolution that occurred in British America between 1765 and 1791. The Americans in the Thirteen Colonies formed independent states that defeated the British in the American Revolut ...

. While the novel continues the story of Philip Kent, started in '' The Bastard'', a large portion focuses on Judson Fletcher, a newly introduced character, as a different rebel. In 1979, the novel was made into a

television film A television film, alternatively known as a television movie, made-for-TV film/movie or TV film/movie, is a feature-length film that is produced and originally distributed by or to a television network, in contrast to theatrical films made for ...

Operation Prime Time Operation Prime Time (OPT) was a consortium of United States, American independent station (North America), independent television stations to develop prime time programming for independent stations. OPT and its spin-off syndication company, Tel ...

Plot summary

Judson Fletcher, a drunkard and a womanizer, lives with his father on Sermon Hill, a large tobacco plantation on the

Rappahannock River The Rappahannock River is a river in eastern Virginia, in the United States, approximately in length.U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map accessed April 1, 2011 It traverses the entir ...

in northern

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...

. Fletcher romantically pursues Peggy Ashford McLean, the wife of his friend Seth McLean. During a great rebellion of slaves, Peggy is raped and Seth is killed. When Judson defends the slaves, his father Angus Fletcher puts his son out of the house. Judson attends the

Second Continental Congress The Second Continental Congress was a late-18th-century meeting of delegates from the Thirteen Colonies that united in support of the American Revolutionary War. The Congress was creating a new country it first named "United Colonies" and in 1 ...

as a delegate and begins an affair with Alicia Parkhurst. Tobias Trumbull, Alicia’s uncle, tries to take her home. When Judson objects, Trumbull challenges him to a duel. The day before the duel, during a debate on the

Lee Resolution The Lee Resolution (also known as "The Resolution for Independence") was the formal assertion passed by the Second Continental Congress on July 2, 1776 which resolved that the Thirteen Colonies in America (at the time referred to as United Colo ...

, Judson is dismissed from the Virginia delegation for drunkenness and therefore misses his chance to vote on the historic resolution. The next day, Judson kills Trumbull in the duel and Alicia commits suicide by drowning. Judson returns to Virginia and lives with Lottie Shaw at a place once owned by her late husband. One day, in a drunken rage, he expels her from her own property. Soon after, he visits Peggy McLean, by now a widow, and raped her; unbeknownst to him, this encounter would produce a daughter, Elizabeth. Judson rides to meet his childhood friend

George Rogers Clark George Rogers Clark (November 19, 1752 – February 13, 1818) was an American surveyor, soldier, and militia officer from Virginia who became the highest-ranking American patriot military officer on the northwestern frontier during the Ame ...

, who is in town recruiting men for a military expedition to the Northwest Territory. Judson enlists with him, but upon his return home, Lottie shoots him and leaves him for dead. Judson recovers and sets off for

Pittsburgh Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Wester ...

in hopes of meeting Clark. Clark refuses to include him in his detachment, citing his alcoholism. On returning to his boat, Clark catches a spy in the act of stealing his orders. After a scuffle, the spy shoots at Clark, but Judson takes the bullet and is mortally wounded. Parallel to this story, the novel continues the adventures of Philip Kent, the main character in the previous novel, as he participates in various notable events of the American Revolutionary War. These include the

Battle of Bunker Hill The Battle of Bunker Hill was fought on June 17, 1775, during the Siege of Boston in the first stage of the American Revolutionary War. The battle is named after Bunker Hill in Charlestown, Massachusetts, which was peripherally involved in ...

Henry Knox Henry Knox (July 25, 1750 – October 25, 1806), a Founding Father of the United States, was a senior general of the Continental Army during the Revolutionary War, serving as chief of artillery in most of Washington's campaigns. Following the ...

’s mission to transport cannons from

Fort Ticonderoga Fort Ticonderoga (), formerly Fort Carillon, is a large 18th-century star fort built by the French at a narrows near the south end of Lake Champlain, in northern New York, in the United States. It was constructed by Canadian-born French mi ...

, the

Battle of Brandywine The Battle of Brandywine, also known as the Battle of Brandywine Creek, was fought between the American Continental Army of General George Washington and the British Army of General Sir William Howe on September 11, 1777, as part of the Ame ...

, and the

Battle of Monmouth The Battle of Monmouth, also known as the Battle of Monmouth Court House, was fought near Monmouth Court House in modern-day Freehold Borough, New Jersey on June 28, 1778, during the American Revolutionary War. It pitted the Continental Army, co ...

, where he is wounded in the leg and mustered out of the army. He receives a letter informing him that his wife has died, leaving him a substantial inheritance. Kent uses the money to begin a publishing firm, Kent and Son. Almost a year later, Kent's friend, the

Marquis de Lafayette Marie-Joseph Paul Yves Roch Gilbert du Motier, Marquis de La Fayette (6 September 1757 – 20 May 1834), known in the United States as Lafayette (, ), was a French aristocrat, freemason and military officer who fought in the American Revoluti ...

, introduces Kent to Peggy McLean, who becomes his second wife.

Adaptation

In 1979, the novel was made into a

Don Johnson Donnie Wayne Johnson (born December 15, 1949) is an American actor, producer and singer. He played the role of James "Sonny" Crockett in the 1980s television series ''Miami Vice'', for which he won a Golden Globe, and received a Primetime Em ...

starred as Judson Fletcher and

Andrew Stevens Herman Andrew Stevens (born June 10, 1955) is an American executive, film producer, director and actor. Early life Stevens was born in Memphis, Tennessee, the only child of actress Stella Stevens and her former husband Noble Herman Stephens. Ca ...

reprised his role as Philip Kent.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rebels, The 1975 American novels American historical novels American novels adapted into films Novels set during the American Revolutionary War Novels by John Jakes 1970s American television miniseries 1979 drama films 1970s historical romance films 1979 films 1979 television films American films based on actual events American historical romance films American Revolutionary War films Cultural depictions of Benjamin Franklin Cultural depictions of George Washington Cultural depictions of John Adams Cultural depictions of John Hancock Cultural depictions of Thomas Jefferson Films based on American novels Operation Prime Time Films directed by Russ Mayberry 1970s American films

Plot summary

Adaptation

See also

References