Chelsea, 1547. At ten years old, Lady Jane Grey arrives at Old Manor to begin her education with the Dowager Queen Katherine: widow of the late Henry VIII. Jane is a bright, scholarly girl, but destined to reach early maturity and be manipulated and groomed by over-ambitious men. After being forced to marry Guildford Dudley, son of the Duke of Northumberland, the country is divided and Jane struggles to come to terms with her situation. Meanwhile, her progress is watched from the filth-laden streets of London by William Hope: a shoemaker who is becoming ever more infatuated with her.
