An exiled leader returns to Poland to lead an uprising against the Russian occupiers.

King Sigismund II Augustus of Poland secretly falls in love with Barbara Radziwiłłówna, a noblewoman of Lithuanian magnate lineage, defying his mother Queen Bona’s plans to wed him to a French princess.

Polish composer Stanisław Moniuszko fights for the right to stage his opera "Halka".

Young Frederic Chopin comes of age during a tumultous time in Polish history.

In war-ravaged Warsaw, five juvenile delinquents are given probation for stealing, to rehabilitate themselves, but remain under the influence of their profiteer-boss.