Based on the famous historical novel by Alessandro Manzoni, and set between 1628 and 1630 in Lombardy, Northern Italy, during the Spanish domination, the film displays the marriage between two young textile workers, Renzo and Lucia. The 1922 version is one of the most ambitious and spectacular films in all Italian silent cinema, with remarkable mass scenes and some images that sparked controversy.

The film is set during the Crusades and describes Godfrey of Bouillon's conquest of Jerusalem in 1099.

An ageing couple, Papa Martin and his wife Genovieffa, live modestly while their son Armando and goddaughter Amelia complete their studies away from home. When the young pair return to celebrate Armando’s law degree, a debt collector exposes that his qualification is forged and demands repayment. To protect his son’s honour, Papa Martin sacrifices his own comfort, returning to work and sending Armando away to start anew. As time passes, the family’s love, guilt, and redemption intertwine in a heartfelt story of sacrifice and moral reckoning.