National Treasure is a series of theatrical

Theatre

Theatre is a collaborative form of fine art that uses live performers to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place. The performers may communicate this experience to the audience through combinations of gesture, speech, song, music or dance...

 action

Action film

Action film is a film genre where one or more heroes is thrust into a series of challenges that require physical feats, extended fights and frenetic chases...

-adventure

Adventure film

Adventure films are a genre of film.Unlike pure, low-budget action films they often use their action scenes preferably to display and explore exotic locations in an energetic way....

 mystery

Mystery film

Mystery film is a sub-genre of the more general category of crime film and at times the thriller genre. It focuses on the efforts of the detective, private investigator or amateur sleuth to solve the mysterious circumstances of a crime by means of clues, investigation, and clever deduction.The...

 films distributed by Walt Disney Pictures

Walt Disney Pictures

Walt Disney Pictures is an American film studio owned by The Walt Disney Company. Walt Disney Pictures and Television, a subsidiary of the Walt Disney Studios and the main production company for live-action feature films within the Walt Disney Motion Pictures Group, based at the Walt Disney...

, produced by Jerry Bruckheimer

Jerry Bruckheimer

Jerome Leon "Jerry" Bruckheimer is an American film and television producer. He has achieved great success in the genres of action, drama, and science fiction. His best known television series are CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, CSI: Miami, CSI: NY, Eleventh Hour, Without a Trace, Cold Case, The...

 and starring Nicolas Cage

Nicolas Cage

Nicolas Cage is an American actor, producer and director, having appeared in over 60 films including Raising Arizona , The Rock , Face/Off , Gone in 60 Seconds , Adaptation , National Treasure , Ghost Rider , Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans , and...

 as Benjamin Franklin Gates, a treasure hunter who, with the help of his father, Patrick Henry Gates (Jon Voight

Jon Voight

Jonathan Vincent "Jon" Voight is an American actor. He has received an Academy Award, out of four nominations, and three Golden Globe Awards, out of nine nominations. Voight is the father of actress Angelina Jolie....

), his girlfriend, Abigail Chase (Diane Kruger

Diane Kruger

Diane Kruger is a German actress and former fashion model. She is known for roles such as Helen in Troy, Dr. Abigail Chase in National Treasure and its sequel, Bridget von Hammersmark in Inglourious Basterds, Anna in Mr...

) and his loyal sidekick, Riley Poole (Justin Bartha

Justin Bartha

Justin Lee Bartha is an American actor, known for his co-starring role as Riley Poole in the National Treasure films and as Doug Billings in The Hangover and The Hangover Part II.-Early life:...

), uncovers hidden troves and secrets from America's past. Additionally there are a series of novels detailing the ancestors of Ben Gates, all written by Catherine Hapka.

National Treasure (2004)

The original National Treasure film centers on the Gates family legend of a fantastic treasure trove of artifacts and gold, hidden by the Founding Fathers

Founding Fathers of the United States

The Founding Fathers of the United States of America were political leaders and statesmen who participated in the American Revolution by signing the United States Declaration of Independence, taking part in the American Revolutionary War, establishing the United States Constitution, or by some...

 of the United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

, and the attempts by the scion of the family, Benjamin Franklin Gates, to find the treasure before his ex-friend, Ian Howe (Sean Bean

Sean Bean

Shaun Mark "Sean" Bean is an English film and stage actor. Bean is best known for playing Boromir in The Lord of the Rings Trilogy and, previously, British Colonel Richard Sharpe in the ITV television series Sharpe...

), steals and destroys the Declaration of Independence

United States Declaration of Independence

The Declaration of Independence was a statement adopted by the Continental Congress on July 4, 1776, which announced that the thirteen American colonies then at war with Great Britain regarded themselves as independent states, and no longer a part of the British Empire. John Adams put forth a...

.

National Treasure: Book of Secrets (2007)

In the sequel to the original 2004 film, black market dealer Mitch Wilkinson (Ed Harris

Ed Harris

Edward Allen "Ed" Harris is an American actor, writer, and director, known for his performances in Appaloosa, Radio, The Rock, The Abyss, Apollo 13, A Beautiful Mind, A History of Violence, and The Truman Show. Harris has also narrated commercials for The Home Depot and other companies...

) locates one of the 18 missing pages of John Wilkes Booth

John Wilkes Booth

John Wilkes Booth was an American stage actor who assassinated President Abraham Lincoln at Ford's Theatre, in Washington, D.C., on April 14, 1865. Booth was a member of the prominent 19th century Booth theatrical family from Maryland and, by the 1860s, was a well-known actor...

's diary, and suggests that Ben's ancestor, Thomas Gates, was a conspirator in the assassination of President Abraham Lincoln

Abraham Lincoln

Abraham Lincoln was the 16th President of the United States, serving from March 1861 until his assassination in April 1865. He successfully led his country through a great constitutional, military and moral crisis – the American Civil War – preserving the Union, while ending slavery, and...

, so Ben sets out to prove his innocence by kidnapping the current US President (Bruce Greenwood

Bruce Greenwood

Bruce Greenwood is a Canadian actor and musician. He is generally known for his roles as U.S. presidents in Thirteen Days and National Treasure: Book of Secrets and for his role as Captain Christopher Pike in the 2009 Star Trek film...

) and by finding the disappeared hidden truth.

National Treasure 3

In December 2007, before the second film was released, Nicolas Cage

Nicolas Cage

Nicolas Cage is an American actor, producer and director, having appeared in over 60 films including Raising Arizona , The Rock , Face/Off , Gone in 60 Seconds , Adaptation , National Treasure , Ghost Rider , Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans , and...

 showed interest in doing a third film, believing it should be more international. In early 2008, Disney registered the domains for NationalTreasure3DVD.com and NationalTreasure4DVD.com. In May 2008, Director Jon Turteltaub said that the filmmaking team would take its time on another National Treasure sequel. In September 2008, Jerry Bruckheimer

Jerry Bruckheimer

Jerome Leon "Jerry" Bruckheimer is an American film and television producer. He has achieved great success in the genres of action, drama, and science fiction. His best known television series are CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, CSI: Miami, CSI: NY, Eleventh Hour, Without a Trace, Cold Case, The...

 officially confirmed that they were in the process of developing a third film. In November 2008, Bruckheimer said that the writers were in the process of writing the script to the film. In March 2009, Jon Voight

Jon Voight

Jonathan Vincent "Jon" Voight is an American actor. He has received an Academy Award, out of four nominations, and three Golden Globe Awards, out of nine nominations. Voight is the father of actress Angelina Jolie....

, who plays Patrick Gates, said that the script was not yet finished, and was also quoted as saying "I just hope there's good stuff for me to play in it, that Helen (Mirren, who plays his ex-wife) will be back." Disney plans to begin filming in late 2010, after Justin Bartha

Justin Bartha

Justin Lee Bartha is an American actor, known for his co-starring role as Riley Poole in the National Treasure films and as Doug Billings in The Hangover and The Hangover Part II.-Early life:...

 has finished The Hangover: Part II.

In May 2010, Comingsoon.net interviewed director Jon Turteltaub

Jon Turteltaub

Jonathan Charles "Jon" Turteltaub is an American film director and producer. He is a graduate of Wesleyan University and the USC School of Cinematic Arts...

 regarding the film. He stated that Cage's involvement in Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance

Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance

Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance is an upcoming 3D superhero film based on the Marvel Comics antihero Ghost Rider, scheduled to be released in theaters on February 17, 2012. The film is a loose sequel to the 2007 film Ghost Rider. It will be directed by Mark Neveldine and Brian Taylor. Nicolas...

would not hinder the making of the film, and that filming was scheduled to begin in late 2010. Turteltaub did not reveal any plot details. Also, producer Jerry Bruckheimer briefly talked to Access Hollywood

Access Hollywood

Access Hollywood is a weekday television entertainment news program covering events and celebrities in the entertainment industry. It was created by former Entertainment Tonight executive producer Jim Van Messel, and is currently directed by Robert Silverstein. In previous years, Doug Dougherty and...

, where he said that the first draft of the screenplay was completed.

Books

There was no novelization of the first movie, but a novelization of the second entitled National Treasure 2: Book of Secrets The Junior Novel was released on November 6, 2007. Parts of the story in the novel version differ slightly from what was actually filmed, owing to changes being made in the screenplay prior to and during production. For example, in the novel, Ben and Abigail photograph the wooden plank found hidden in the Queen's desk and leave it behind, with the car chase following, but in the movie, they take the plank with them on the chase. Also, the date on the statue in Paris, which is also the combination to access the plank is shown as 1865 rather than 1876.

Gates Family Mystery

Disney Press has also published a series of spin-off historical novels about ancestors of the Gates Family, all by Catherine Hapka.

#	Title	Released	Time period
1	Changing Tides	November 6, 2007	1612
2	Midnight Ride	March 8, 2008	1773–1775
3	Uncharted	August 26, 2008	1803
4	Westward Bound	December 23, 2008	1848–1849
5	Forever Free	April 28, 2009	1872
6	Roaring In	August 25, 2009	1920s

• Changing Tides is set in England in the year 1612. The epilogue from Changing Tides is included at the back of the National Treasure book. Samuel Gates and his brother, William, travel to the Americas and the newly organized Jamestown
  Jamestown Settlement
  Jamestown Settlement is a name used by the Commonwealth of Virginia's portion of the historical sites and museums at Jamestown. Jamestown was the first successful English settlement on the mainland of North America...
  
  , hoping to find a fortune and rescue their family name.
• Midnight Ride is set in Boston in the year 1775. At the onset of the Revolutionary War, John Raleigh Gates follows the clues to find an incredible treasure.
• Uncharted is set in 1803. After the American Revolutionary War, Adam Benjamin Gates and his twin sister, Eleanor or Ellie, have heard their father's tales of his part in the Revolutionary War and his discovery of a great treasure that helped the Patriots. Soon, Adam and Ellie find themselves on a dangerous journey into uncharted lands in search of a treasure hidden deep within the wilderness.
• Westward Bound takes place in 1848 and 1849. Thomas Gates is convinced that the treasure is located with someone or in something called the Charlotte. However, his youngest brother James Madison Gates wants a treasure that is easier to get to. In 1848, while helping a friend on the run from her father, he reluctantly follows a series of letters his aunt, Eleanor, sent to his father, believing it leads to a treasure that is bigger than the gold of California.
• Forever Free takes place in 1872. After the death of his father, Charles Gates considers running away from his family's past of treasure hunting. However, when he befriends a freed slave named Daniel, they set off to uncover what civil rights leaders fought to protect.
• Roaring In takes place in the 1920s. Jay Gates wishes to remain in peace and quiet, despite the economic boom of the 1920s. However, he soon learns of hints in regards to the Charlotte, for which his family had been searching for almost a century, and decides to seek adventure.

Characters

• Benjamin "Ben" Franklin Gates (portrayed by Nicolas Cage
  Nicolas Cage
  Nicolas Cage is an American actor, producer and director, having appeared in over 60 films including Raising Arizona , The Rock , Face/Off , Gone in 60 Seconds , Adaptation , National Treasure , Ghost Rider , Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans , and...
  
  ) is the protagonist of the films. Ben has heard stories about the Templar Treasure from his grandfather ever since he was a young child, and decides to hunt for it himself. Along with Ian Howe and Riley Poole, Ben discovers the Charlotte, which leads him to the next clue in the treasure hunt. After being betrayed by Ian, he sets out against him to steal the Declaration of Independence
  United States Declaration of Independence
  The Declaration of Independence was a statement adopted by the Continental Congress on July 4, 1776, which announced that the thirteen American colonies then at war with Great Britain regarded themselves as independent states, and no longer a part of the British Empire. John Adams put forth a...
  
  . As the search progresses, Ben meets and eventually falls in love with Abigail Chase. He argues with his father who doesn't believe in the treasure, after 20 thankless years of seeking it himself. However, Ben is successful in discovering the treasure. In National Treasure: Book of Secrets, his family name is threatened by Mitch Wilkinson, and he finds himself hunting for the legendary City of Gold
  City of Gold
  -Myth and legend:*Quivira and Cíbola, two of the mythical seven Cities of Gold*El Dorado, Mythical city of gold**El Dorado *City of the Caesars, Mythical South American city of great wealth...
  
  . He and Abigail have broken up, but are reunited during the treasure hunt. During this journey, Ben has to kidnap the President of the United States (Bruce Greenwood
  Bruce Greenwood
  Bruce Greenwood is a Canadian actor and musician. He is generally known for his roles as U.S. presidents in Thirteen Days and National Treasure: Book of Secrets and for his role as Captain Christopher Pike in the 2009 Star Trek film...
  
  ) to find a clue in the President's Book of Secrets. Ben is skilled at code-breaking, and has degrees in American History (from Georgetown University
  Georgetown University
  Georgetown University is a private, Jesuit, research university whose main campus is in the Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, D.C. Founded in 1789, it is the oldest Catholic university in the United States...
  
  ) and Mechanical Engineering (from MIT
  Massachusetts Institute of Technology
  The Massachusetts Institute of Technology is a private research university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts. MIT has five schools and one college, containing a total of 32 academic departments, with a strong emphasis on scientific and technological education and research.Founded in 1861 in...
  
  ) as well as being an ROTC-commissioned Navy Diving Officer. Ben is portrayed by Hunter Gomez
  Hunter Gomez
  Hunter Gomez is an American actor. He is probably most widely recognized for his work in films and guest appearances in American television.-Career:...
  
   in the beginning of the first film.
• Riley Poole (portrayed by Justin Bartha
  Justin Bartha
  Justin Lee Bartha is an American actor, known for his co-starring role as Riley Poole in the National Treasure films and as Doug Billings in The Hangover and The Hangover Part II.-Early life:...
  
  ) is the best friend of Ben Gates, and co-finder of both the Templar Treasure and the City of Gold. Ben and his financier Ian Howe find Riley working in a cubicle. He comes along on the journey to find the Charlotte, using his computer expertise to assist his friends. He writes a book about the Templar Treasure and other myths, and this book becomes a key to helping find the City of Gold in the second film. He begins having financial trouble in the second movie, and his Ferrari is impounded by the IRS
  Internal Revenue Service
  The Internal Revenue Service is the revenue service of the United States federal government. The agency is a bureau of the Department of the Treasury, and is under the immediate direction of the Commissioner of Internal Revenue...
  
   while he is autographing copies of his book at a local store. However, his car is returned to him after the discovery of the City of Gold. In both films he is portrayed as the comic relief
  Comic relief
  Comic relief is the inclusion of a humorous character, scene or witty dialogue in an otherwise serious work, often to relieve tension.-Definition:...
  
   of the group, and regularly replies with sarcastic jokes. He is very excited when he finally knows something Ben doesn't.
• Abigail Chase (portrayed by Diane Kruger
  Diane Kruger
  Diane Kruger is a German actress and former fashion model. She is known for roles such as Helen in Troy, Dr. Abigail Chase in National Treasure and its sequel, Bridget von Hammersmark in Inglourious Basterds, Anna in Mr...
  
  ) is a German American
  German American
  German Americans are citizens of the United States of German ancestry and comprise about 51 million people, or 17% of the U.S. population, the country's largest self-reported ancestral group...
  
   employee at the National Archives
  National Archives and Records Administration
  The National Archives and Records Administration is an independent agency of the United States government charged with preserving and documenting government and historical records and with increasing public access to those documents, which comprise the National Archives...
  
   in Washington, D.C.
  Washington, D.C.
  Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
  
  , and the girlfriend of Benjamin Gates. The two meet during Ben's hunt for the Templar Treasure, when Ben comes to warn the Archives of Ian Howe's plan to steal the Declaration of Independence. When Abigail is brought into the hunt, she is at first against helping, attempting to escape with the Declaration. However, she begins to trust Ben, and the two quickly fall in love. She plays a large role in finding the treasure, and at the end of the first film she and Ben have moved in together. In the beginning of the second film, she and Ben have split up, and she is dating Connor, a curator at the White House. She is out on a date with Connor when Ben attempts to steal her ID Pass for the Library of Congress
  Library of Congress
  The Library of Congress is the research library of the United States Congress, de facto national library of the United States, and the oldest federal cultural institution in the United States. Located in three buildings in Washington, D.C., it is the largest library in the world by shelf space and...
  
   to view a page from the diary of John Wilkes Booth
  John Wilkes Booth
  John Wilkes Booth was an American stage actor who assassinated President Abraham Lincoln at Ford's Theatre, in Washington, D.C., on April 14, 1865. Booth was a member of the prominent 19th century Booth theatrical family from Maryland and, by the 1860s, was a well-known actor...
  
  . She and Ben argue, but when she learns of Ben's mission to find the Lost City of Gold, she decides to rejoin him and Riley in the treasure hunting. They begin to make up over the course of the film, and are soon a couple again.
• Patrick Henry Gates (portrayed by Jon Voight
  Jon Voight
  Jonathan Vincent "Jon" Voight is an American actor. He has received an Academy Award, out of four nominations, and three Golden Globe Awards, out of nine nominations. Voight is the father of actress Angelina Jolie....
  
  ) is the father of Benjamin Gates, named for Patrick Henry
  Patrick Henry
  Patrick Henry was an orator and politician who led the movement for independence in Virginia in the 1770s. A Founding Father, he served as the first and sixth post-colonial Governor of Virginia from 1776 to 1779 and subsequently, from 1784 to 1786...
  
  . He doesn't believe in the treasures at first, thinking that the clues will just lead to other clues, not the treasure at all. It is revealed that he searched for the treasure himself for 20 years and never found it, so he came to believe that the treasure was a hoax. He thinks it's a waste of time to search for the treasure and he is dismayed when he discovers that Ben stole the Declaration of Independence. He is taken hostage by Ian and is present when they discover the treasure. In Book of Secrets, Patrick is angered by Mitch Wilkinson when he comes forward with a Booth diary page that seems to show that Thomas Gates was involved in the death of President Lincoln. He then becomes discouraged by the fact that they have no "proof" that Wilkinson is lying. When Ben and Riley are in London, Patrick is attacked by the Wilkinsons, who clone his cell phone to get access to Ben's progress. In this film, Patrick is reunited with his ex-wife, Emily Appleton. The two have to team up to save their son, and it appears that they are back together by the film's end. The two met on a treasure hunt of their own and the treasure hunt for Cibola seems to cause them to remember their love for each other and finally reconcile. Patrick is named as one of the co-finders of the City of Gold.
• Agent Peter Sadusky (portrayed by Harvey Keitel
  Harvey Keitel
  Harvey Keitel is an American actor. Some of his most notable starring roles were in Martin Scorsese's Mean Streets and Taxi Driver, Ridley Scott's The Duellists and Thelma and Louise, Ettore Scola's That Night in Varennes, Quentin Tarantino's Reservoir Dogs and Pulp Fiction, Jane Campion's The...
  
  ) is an FBI
  Federal Bureau of Investigation
  The Federal Bureau of Investigation is an agency of the United States Department of Justice that serves as both a federal criminal investigative body and an internal intelligence agency . The FBI has investigative jurisdiction over violations of more than 200 categories of federal crime...
  
   agent who first meets the treasure-hunters when he is assigned to the case after the Declaration of Independence is stolen. He looks for Ben throughout the night before finally finding him and taking him into custody in Philadelphia. Ben escapes him in New York, but Sadusky returns to retrieve the Declaration. He seems to not believe the story of the treasure at first, but actually seems to know it quite well, when it is shown that he is a Freemason
  Freemasonry
  Freemasonry is a fraternal organisation that arose from obscure origins in the late 16th to early 17th century. Freemasonry now exists in various forms all over the world, with a membership estimated at around six million, including approximately 150,000 under the jurisdictions of the Grand Lodge...
  
  . Sadusky arrests Ian Howe at the end of the film. In Book of Secrets, he is introduced when some of his agents come forth with a newspaper article about the Booth diary page. He is suspicious of Wilkinson, and begins to put the pieces together. Later, he is on Ben's case again when Gates 'kidnaps' the President of the United States. He also shows he knows more than he lets on about things: he confirms the Book of Secrets' existence to Ben, but claims not to know its location. After learning that Ben kidnapped the President, he apparently guesses what it was for and heads straight to the Library of Congress, revealing that he somehow apparently knew the location all along. He follows him to Mount Rushmore, only to lose him until after the discovery of Cibola.
• Ian Howe (portrayed by Sean Bean
  Sean Bean
  Shaun Mark "Sean" Bean is an English film and stage actor. Bean is best known for playing Boromir in The Lord of the Rings Trilogy and, previously, British Colonel Richard Sharpe in the ITV television series Sharpe...
  
  ) is Ben's ex-partner and ex-financier, and the main antagonist in the first film. He comes along with Ben and Riley to the Arctic to search for the Charlotte. Ian and Ben have a brief face-off, after Ian becomes disappointed that Ben doesn't want to help steal and run chemical tests on the Declaration of Independence
  Declaration of independence
  A declaration of independence is an assertion of the independence of an aspiring state or states. Such places are usually declared from part or all of the territory of another nation or failed nation, or are breakaway territories from within the larger state...
  
   with him, and the faceoff ends with the ship exploding. Ian and one of accompanying men escape the ship before the explosion, and, probably assuming Ben and Riley are dead, drive off. The night of the 70th anniversary gala at the National Archives
  National Archives and Records Administration
  The National Archives and Records Administration is an independent agency of the United States government charged with preserving and documenting government and historical records and with increasing public access to those documents, which comprise the National Archives...
  
  , Ian and his men break in, only to find that Ben has beaten them to the Declaration. (Ben stole it to protect it from Ian, fearing that Ian would not treat it with respect and may even destroy the document). Ian and his men then follow him out of the building and a car chase ensues. Ian then goes to Philadelphia, where he chases Abigail and Riley and ends up stealing the Declaration from them. After Ben is arrested by the FBI, Ian ends up helping him escape from custody, and then meets him at Trinity Church in New York City
  New York City
  New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
  
  . He follows Ben down into the tunnels beneath the church, where one of his men dies after falling through the rotting floorboards. The group ends up at a dead end, and Patrick makes up a clue about a lantern and it leads to the Old North Church
  Old North Church
  Old North Church , at 193 Salem Street, in the North End of Boston, is the location from which the famous "One if by land, and two if by sea" signal is said to have been sent...
  
   in Boston, and it holds the Templar Treasure. Ian eventually leaves, deserting the others. Ian is finally apprehended in Boston, while attempting to break into the church, where he is arrested on charges of kidnapping
  Kidnapping
  In criminal law, kidnapping is the taking away or transportation of a person against that person's will, usually to hold the person in false imprisonment, a confinement without legal authority...
  
  , attempted murder
  Murder
  Murder is the unlawful killing, with malice aforethought, of another human being, and generally this state of mind distinguishes murder from other forms of unlawful homicide...
  
   and trespass
  Trespass
  Trespass is an area of tort law broadly divided into three groups: trespass to the person, trespass to chattels and trespass to land.Trespass to the person, historically involved six separate trespasses: threats, assault, battery, wounding, mayhem, and maiming...
  
  ing on government property.
• Mitch Wilkinson (portrayed by Ed Harris
  Ed Harris
  Edward Allen "Ed" Harris is an American actor, writer, and director, known for his performances in Appaloosa, Radio, The Rock, The Abyss, Apollo 13, A Beautiful Mind, A History of Violence, and The Truman Show. Harris has also narrated commercials for The Home Depot and other companies...
  
  ) is the main antagonist of the second film. Wilkinson first appears when Ben and Patrick are giving a speech, showing a page from the diary of John Wilkes Booth
  John Wilkes Booth
  John Wilkes Booth was an American stage actor who assassinated President Abraham Lincoln at Ford's Theatre, in Washington, D.C., on April 14, 1865. Booth was a member of the prominent 19th century Booth theatrical family from Maryland and, by the 1860s, was a well-known actor...
  
  , which has the name Thomas Gates written on it. He says he believes it means that Gates was a conspirator in the Lincoln assassination. Wilkinson is a direct descendant of the Confederate General (and Freemason) Albert Pike
  Albert Pike
  Albert Pike was an attorney, Confederate officer, writer, and Freemason. Pike is the only Confederate military officer or figure to be honored with an outdoor statue in Washington, D.C...
  
   and has a letter from the Queen to Pike that gives a clue to Cibola. Wilkinson and his brothers keep close tabs on Ben and his friends as they search for the clues. He overhears Ben mentioning the Statue of Liberty
  Statue of Liberty
  The Statue of Liberty is a colossal neoclassical sculpture on Liberty Island in New York Harbor, designed by Frédéric Bartholdi and dedicated on October 28, 1886...
  
   to Abigail in a phone conversation, and ends up going to New York City, only to find that it’s the wrong statue. Before this, though, Mitch and his brothers break into Patrick’s home and clone his cell phone, using this advantage to keep track of Ben and listen in on his conversations with his father. He and his two brothers follow the treasure hunters to London
  London
  London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
  
  , where he chases them and obtains the plank from the Resolute desk
  Resolute desk
  The Resolute desk is a large, nineteenth-century partners' desk often chosen by presidents of the United States for use in the White House Oval Office as the Oval Office desk. It was a gift from Queen Victoria to President Rutherford B. Hayes in 1880 and was built from the timbers of the British...
  
   at Buckingham Palace. Wilkinson then returns to the United States, where he learns that Ben’s mother, Emily, is able to translate the Native American planks. He goes to her and then kidnaps her after she translates the plank, taking her to Mount Rushmore
  Mount Rushmore
  Mount Rushmore National Memorial is a sculpture carved into the granite face of Mount Rushmore near Keystone, South Dakota, in the United States...
  
  , where they meet with the rest of the group. They all venture into the caves below the mountain, and Wilkinson threatens to kill people to keep them going. His true motives are revealed: he wanted his family to finally gain some fame for discovering something and smeared Thomas Gates' name to get Ben involved in the treasure hunt, although he would later apologize to Ben after they found the City of Gold and when Thomas Gates's innocence is proven. Eventually, as a cave is filling with water, Mitch allows Ben and the others to escape and drowns in the flooded City of Gold. Initially he forced Ben to stay behind so he could live, but he stays instead and his last request is that Ben give him credit for the discovery. Despite having died, Mitch is given partial credit for the discovery of the treasure at Ben's insistence.
• Emily Appleton Gates (portrayed by Helen Mirren
  Helen Mirren
  Dame Helen Mirren, DBE is an English actor. She has won an Academy Award for Best Actress, four SAG Awards, four BAFTAs, three Golden Globes, four Emmy Awards, and two Cannes Film Festival Best Actress Awards.-Early life and family:...
  
  ) is the mother of Ben Gates and ex-wife of Patrick. She is a professor at the University of Maryland
  University of Maryland, College Park
  The University of Maryland, College Park is a top-ranked public research university located in the city of College Park in Prince George's County, Maryland, just outside Washington, D.C...
  
  , and she has an extensive knowledge of Native American history. She met Patrick during a treasure hunt, but their differences caused them to break up and not speak for 32 years. When Patrick arrives, she is less than pleased to see him. She translates the plank that Ben and his friends find at Buckingham Palace, which leads them to find the other half of the plank. Patrick is sent to have her translate it, though Mitch Wilkinson gets to her first, forcing her to lie to Patrick before she is kidnapped. Patrick tries to clear the air a bit between them, but she blows him off to protect him, although she slips in a clue about what's really going on that he and Ben decipher. At Mount Rushmore, she and Patrick are separated from the others in the cave, and it begins to be apparent that Patrick and Emily have fallen in love again.
• Thomas Gates (portrayed by Jason Earles
  Jason Earles
  Jason Daniel Earles is an American actor, known for his role as Jackson Stewart on the Disney Channel sitcom Hannah Montana and his role as Sensei Rudy in his new Disney XD series Kickin' It.-Personal life and philanthropy:...
  
   in the first film and Joel Gretsch
  Joel Gretsch
  Joel James Gretsch is an American actor. His roles include Tom Baldwin on the USA Network series The 4400, the monstruous Capt./Maj./Col. Owen Crawford in the Steven Spielberg produced 2002 sci-fi miniseries Taken and Father Jack Landry on V.-Early life:Gretsch was born in St...
  
   in the second film) is the father of Charles Carroll Gates. Thomas appeared in both films. Thomas lived around Washington, D.C. In 1832, Charles Carroll
  Charles Carroll of Carrollton
  Charles Carroll of Carrollton was a wealthy Maryland planter and an early advocate of independence from Great Britain. He served as a delegate to the Continental Congress and later as United States Senator for Maryland...
  
   told Thomas the story of the Templar Treasure and gave him the last remaining clue to finding it: "the secret lies with Charlotte." In 1848, Thomas was still trying to figure out the clue that had been given to him. At this time, his brother James follows a series of letters their aunt sent to their father, believing it leads to a treasure bigger than the gold of California. Thomas became known for his ability to solve puzzles. Just five days after the end of the Civil War, he is confronted by John Wilkes Booth
  John Wilkes Booth
  John Wilkes Booth was an American stage actor who assassinated President Abraham Lincoln at Ford's Theatre, in Washington, D.C., on April 14, 1865. Booth was a member of the prominent 19th century Booth theatrical family from Maryland and, by the 1860s, was a well-known actor...
  
   and another member of the K.G.C. They present to him a cipher, and he immediately begins to decode it. Booth leaves and proceeds with his plans to assassinate Lincoln. Soon after, Thomas soon learns that the men who approached him were members of the K.G.C., and he stops decoding the cipher. The man takes a gun out and urges him to continue deciphering the code. Suddenly, news of Lincoln's assassination is heard and the people in the bar are forced to exit. The man continues to urge Thomas to finish deciphering the code. Thomas refuses. The man shoots him, takes a page, and leaves. Thomas is left there with his son, Charles. His dying words to Charles are "the debt that all men pay..."
• Charles Carroll Gates is the son of Thomas Gates. He witnessed his father's murder on April 14, 1865, and recounted the story to his grandson, Patrick Gates, who used this information to help figure out the location of a treasure. Charles is the main character in the novel, Forever Free, where he befriends a freed slave.
• Adam Benjamin Gates is the son of John Raleigh Gates. He, along with his sister Rebecca, are the main characters in the novel, Westward Bound, which takes place in the year 1803.
• John Raleigh Gates is the main character in the novel, Midnight Ride. He lived during the time of the American Revolution
  American Revolution
  The American Revolution was the political upheaval during the last half of the 18th century in which thirteen colonies in North America joined together to break free from the British Empire, combining to become the United States of America...
  
  .

Gates family

The tree below shows the Gates family, including Ben’s ancestors mentioned in the series of novels based on the movies, Changing Tides, Midnight Ride, and Uncharted. A detailed family tree is presented in the novel, Uncharted. Benjamin Franklin Gates' direct line is in bold.
b. 1791|CHA=Charlotte}}