The Scarlet Pimpernel

“Thus human beings judge of one another, superficially, casually, throwing contempt on one another, with but little reason, and no charity.”

There is more to Sir Percy Blakeney than meets the eye. Everyone (including his estranged wife) consider Percy to be nothing more than a fool. But among the exclusive group of Englishmen who form the League of the Pimpernel, he is a master swordsman and rescuer of French aristocrats from Madame la Guillotine.

At the height of the Reign of Terror, executions were a daily occurrence. Any members of the French aristocracy merely suspected of treason could be sentenced to death by the tribunal. There was no hope of justice or mercy, or even a fair trial. Only the Scarlet Pimpernel could rescue them from their fate and bring them to safety at the coast of England. With each rescue, the public prosecutor would find a paper with the image of a little red flower, a scarlet pimpernel.

The Scarlet Pimpernel blazed trails for other unlikely superheroes with a secret identity, including Batman, Zorro, Black Widow, and many more. Listen to this inAudio production and discover why Spiderman creator Stan Lee says the Scarlet Pimpernel is “the first character who could be called a superhero.”