The Scarlet Pimpernel [Classic Tales Edition] recap

In 1792, a secretive English rescuer known as the Scarlet Pimpernel repeatedly carries French aristocrats beyond the reach of the guillotine. Chauvelin, an agent of the Republic, coerces the fashionable Marguerite Blakeney into helping identify him by threatening her brother Armand. A message stolen at a ball gives Chauvelin the lead he needs, but Marguerite soon discovers that the Pimpernel is her own apparently foolish husband, Sir Percy. She follows the pursuit to Calais to warn him and save Armand. Percy uses disguises, planted clues, and Chauvelin's certainty against him, diverting the soldiers while the fugitives reach his yacht. He rescues Marguerite as well, and the couple reconcile after the truth about Percy's double life and Marguerite's coercion is understood. Chauvelin's trap fails, and the Blakeneys return to England together.

In revolutionary France, an unidentified Englishman called the Scarlet Pimpernel repeatedly helps condemned aristocrats escape the guillotine. He and his associates use disguises and misdirection, leaving only the sign of a small flower behind. Across the Channel, the Fisherman's Rest at Dover receives Sir Andrew Ffoulkes and Lord Antony Dewhurst, followed by the newly rescued de Tournay family. The Comtesse and her daughter Suzanne are safe, but the Comte remains in France. Marguerite Blakeney, a celebrated former French actress, arrives with her immensely wealthy English husband, Sir Percy. Society admires her intelligence while treating Percy's foppish manner as a joke. The Comtesse publicly shuns Marguerite because a denunciation associated with her led to the deaths of members of the St. Cyr family. Beneath the crowded inn's celebration, old grievances and the rescuers' secrets remain active.

Marguerite's social brilliance contrasts with the cold formality of her marriage. She maintains that the St. Cyr denunciation began as an impulsive retaliation and that she did not anticipate its fatal consequences, but Percy has withdrawn from her since learning of it. Her brother Armand prepares to return to France, despite the danger, and their affectionate farewell shows how strongly she depends upon him. Chauvelin, an acquaintance from her former life and now an agent of the Republic, arrives in England to expose the Scarlet Pimpernel. Unable to arrest anyone openly, he seeks information through Marguerite's access to English high society. After two members of the rescue league are attacked, Chauvelin obtains a letter that links Armand with treasonous activity. He now has the means to threaten the person Marguerite most wants to protect.

At Lord Grenville's ball, Chauvelin tells Marguerite that Armand's incriminating letter will be sent to France unless she helps uncover the Pimpernel. Forced to choose, she watches Sir Andrew and secures a note arranging a secret meeting in the library. Chauvelin uses it to approach the man he believes is the League's leader, though Marguerite does not learn the man's identity. Once she has fulfilled her part, Chauvelin returns Armand's letter, leaving her horrified by the possible consequences of her cooperation. She tries to speak honestly with Percy about their damaged marriage and senses that affection survives beneath his reserve. His response offers some hope of reconciliation, but neither of them reveals the knowledge that would explain the other's conduct, and Chauvelin continues acting on the information she supplied.

Marguerite returns home to learn that Percy has abruptly left for the Continent. In his private room she finds the Scarlet Pimpernel's emblem and understands that her apparently vacant husband is the rescuer whom Chauvelin is pursuing. His public foolishness, including the pose maintained within their marriage, has protected his dangerous work. Marguerite turns to Sir Andrew, confesses how Chauvelin used Armand against her, and asks for help warning Percy. They cross the Channel, but bad weather and delays allow Chauvelin to retain his lead. In Calais, the French agent makes a rough inn his base and prepares to intercept Percy before he can reach the fugitives. Marguerite and Sir Andrew must search without revealing either Percy's identity or their own purpose.

At Brogard's inn, Marguerite secretly observes Chauvelin's encounter with Percy. Percy never abandons his foolish manner, eating calmly while the agent attempts to control the meeting, then using a cloud of pepper to make his escape. Chauvelin responds by placing soldiers on the roads and arranging an ambush near a coastal hut, where Armand, the Comte de Tournay, and other fugitives expect their rescuer. Marguerite follows the pursuit in the hope of reaching Percy first. The soldiers are ordered to capture the Pimpernel and use him to locate the hidden aristocrats. As the search tightens around the hut and the coast, Marguerite still cannot tell whether Percy recognizes the trap or whether Chauvelin has successfully anticipated the rescue route.

Percy takes the disguise of an impoverished Jewish traveler and uses Chauvelin's contempt to steer the pursuit. By transporting the agent, manipulating what the soldiers see, and leaving misleading evidence, he directs them away from the true escape route. While Chauvelin's men chase the false trail, Percy reaches Armand, the Comte de Tournay, and the other fugitives and sends them toward his yacht. Marguerite is discovered near the hut and threatened, but the soldiers return too late to prevent the rescue. Percy then drops his disguise and brings her to safety aboard the vessel. Marguerite now knows that her husband's empty-headed public character concealed the Scarlet Pimpernel; Percy understands that she acted under pressure and then risked herself to warn him. Their mutual mistrust gives way to reconciliation. Sir Andrew and Suzanne can look toward marriage, while Chauvelin remains behind in France, comprehensively outmaneuvered.

Near the hut on the Calais coast, Chauvelin's men wait to capture the Scarlet Pimpernel and the fugitives he means to rescue. Percy, disguised as a Jewish traveler, has already manipulated the search by carrying the agent and planting a false trail. Marguerite is found nearby, but the threat to her does not repair Chauvelin's failing plan: Percy gets Armand, the Comte de Tournay, and the other fugitives away to his yacht before the soldiers return. He then reveals himself to Marguerite and brings her aboard. She understands that her husband's foolish public identity has concealed the Pimpernel, while Percy learns how Chauvelin forced her apparent betrayal. Their estrangement ends in reconciliation. Sir Andrew and Suzanne are free to continue toward marriage, and Chauvelin is left on the French coast after his quarry escapes to England.