The movie begins in Mississippi in the year 1963 where a farmer named Newt Knight Works for the confederate army. He serves the army as a medico. Unlike others, he is the one who opposes slavery and he solely believes in serving and helping people. He doesn’t like to fight the Union but he rather loves to help the injured. But his life takes a turn when his nephew loses his life in a battle and Newt has to move back to his home to save his own family.
But unfortunately this kind and helpful man who believes in staying away from fights is given the tag of an outlaw deserter. Due to these things Newt is forced to run away. In this struggle he finds many other slaves. They are the slaves who flew away and are now hiding themselves in swamps. Newt forms an alliance with all those people and leads a rebellion in order to change the country and also to make a remarkable History.