Protest implies peacful opposition - perhaps a march in the street - asking for a change in policy. Revolt (the root word of revolution) and rebel (the root word of rebellion) imply resistance, force and violence. Sometimes we hear about a "peaceful revolution" or "bloodless revolution," where a million people in the streets have caused a dictator's spine to go weak, but this is very rare. In general, dictators claw their way to power using force and respect nothing less, having only contempt for peaceful protests.

A rebellion is an unsuccessful revolution. For example, you don't call the American or Russian Revolutions, rebellions. Neither do you call the Taiping Tien Guo a revolution but a rebellion. Also it depends which side are you on? During the war British called it a rebellion while the rebels call it a revolution.