Ireland was gripped by revolutionary fervour in the year of 1798, as the United Irishmen staged an uprising. One by one the men of villages and towns are presuaded to go and fight for the cause.

This tale concerns Art, a young Wexford man who hears information about the rebellion. He goes to join the other men in battle but soon changes his mind. Afraid of the reaction of the locals, he takes refuge in the hills rather than return home. From this vantage point, he sees all the wounded and dead return home. Eventually hearing of a supposed victory, he sets off to fight not really knowing why.