England, 1800. The daughter of an Oxfordshire country doctor, Caroline Fairbanks, arrives in London accompanied by her handsome but dissolute fianc , Captain Roger Soames. But Caroline quickly sours on Roger's boorish social circle, which includes the arrogant Lord Jack Willoughby, who pursues her despite her engagement to his friend. Meanwhile, Irish-American shipwright Declan Fitzpatrick has delivered a newly-built ship to its English owners and...