King Richard the Lionheart and his fellow crusaders set out to recapture the Holy Land, but on the way they run into trouble in Sicily before capturing Cyprus from the Byzantines. Eventually they join the siege of Acre in the Holy Land and the tide of the war turns in the crusaders' favour, but not without the king making some bitter enemies. In England, Richard's mother, Eleanor of Aquitaine, and William Marshall, Earl of Pembroke, struggle to frustrate Prince John's efforts to seize the throne in his brother's absence. Aided by various members of the de Cuille family, King Richard defeats the Saracens under Saladin time after time, displaying great personal courage; but disunity is rife in the crusader ranks, particularly between the rival claimants for the Christian throne of Jerusalem, and animosity between their leaders ultimately costs the crusaders their goal of recovering Jerusalem. With both armies exhausted and Richard desperate to return home to confront Prince John, the crusade ends with an honourable compromise, but an unwelcome encounter with old foes on the return journey leads to death, incarceration and the bankruptcy of a nation. The surviving members of the de Cuille family return home to find out that much has changed in their absence.