England in 1647: King Charles is in prison, and Cromwell's men are fighting the King's men. These are dangerous times for everybody. The four Beverley children have no parents; their mother is dead and their father died while fighting for the King. Now Cromwell's soldiers have come to burn the house — with the children in it. The four of them escape into the New Forest — but how will they live? What will they eat? And will Cromwell's soldiers find them?