England, 1554. Henry VIII is dead. The country is divided, Catholic against Protestant. Henry's eldest daughter Mary, a fervent Catholic, is Queen. She is childless. The Catholics' greatest fear is the succession of Mary's Protestant half-sister, Elizabeth. After Mary's death, Elizabeth ascends to the throne, thrust into an edgy world of political and religious flux she struggles to protect her power, life, and independence as the court boils with intrigue and conspiracy. Elizabeth begins her reign in a land divided by bloody turmoil, and becomes a cunning strategist, weighing the counsel of her mysterious advisors, thwarting her devious rivals, and denying her own desires for the good of her country.