In the spring of 1780, Polly Cooper, a young patriot, decides to smuggle rifles to her brothers defending Charleston against the British siege. As she approaches the city, she's captured by 25-year-old Irish Colonel Lord Rawdon. This begins an improbable romance as Charleston falls and Rawdon spends the next year trying to subdue the South Carolina backcountry. Polly struggles with divided loyalties as Rawdon wins a succession of battles, only to discover that victory in love and war, eludes him at the end.