1870 - High Victorian Age; Franco-Prussian War

George inherits Morland Place just before his majority, and though he believes himself more than equal to the challenge, he falls victim to the penniless but determined Miss Turlingham. He marries her against advice, and embarks on a spending spree the estate cannot afford to satisfy his new bride. In London, Charlotte's daughter Venetia, inspired by what she witnessed in Berlin during the Franco-Prussian war, is determined to become a doctor. But society is not ready to let women join the profession, and her struggle seems doomed to failure.