Plot Summary for
The Birth of a Nation (1915) More at IMDbPro »

Two brothers, Phil and Ted Stoneman, visit their friends in Piedmont, South Carolina: the family Cameron. This friendship is affected by the Civil War, as the Stonemans and the Camerons must join up opposite armies. The consequences of the War in their lives are shown in connection to major historical events, like the development of the Civil War itself, Lincoln's assassination, and the birth of the Ku Klux Klan. Written by Victor Munoz <vmunoz@macul.ciencias.uchile.cl>

In 1860, the Stoneman and Cameron families are part of the aristocracy, Austin Stoneman a powerful U.S. Congressman, the Cameron father a respected physician. The Stonemans live in the Pennsylvania countryside when Austin is not in Washington, while the Camerons live in Piedmont, South Carolina. Phil Stoneman and Ben Cameron, the eldest son of each respective family, are old school chums. When Phil and his younger brother Tod Stoneman visit Ben in Piedmont, Phil falls in love with Ben's eldest sister, Margaret Cameron, while Ben falls in love with the Stoneman's only sister, Elsie Stoneman, after only seeing her photograph. The Stoneman brother's trip is cut short with the start of the Civil War. Despite being on opposing sides, the Stoneman and Cameron's friendship is not diminished, even in direct battles, which results in casualties in both families. Following the war and the assassination of President Lincoln, Austin, in a position of greater power and wanting to advance the cause of the blacks, appoints Silas Lynch, a mulatto, to rally the black vote in the south. This move is followed by the Stoneman's move to Piedmont, a more favorable climate for Austin's failing health. The move strengthens the romances between Phil and Margaret, and between Elsie and Ben. But Lynch, also based in Piedmont, has other things on his mind. An incident between a renegade black man named Gus and the Cameron's youngest daughter, Flora Cameron, begins an uprising of the Ku Klux Klan to protect the dwindling white power. The Cameron's support of the Clan threatens Elsie and Ben's relationship until... Written by Huggo

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