The hero of the novel, Brian Fitz, a man of rare nobility, is thrown into the most difficult trials by life. With the sword and fidelity to the oath, he defends the right to the legal accession to the throne of the daughter of the deceased King of England Henry I Matilda. England is plunged into a bloody civil war, into the kingdom of robbery, cruelty and treachery, and in this merciless battle for the crown, Briand honorably defends the right to allegiance to what was given to him word.