France, 1577: Louise, the daughter of Admiral Gaspard de Coligny, is among the few survivors of St. Bartholomew’s Day massacre, in which her father, her husband and many of her closest friends are killed. After that day her life is a constant struggle not to lose her identity, an attempt to live up to the great responsibility of the people who, like her, survived while many others died. In her tireless search for the common good, even through the continued misfortunes of her life, Louise embodies the female roots of modern Europe.