The true tale of the 18th-century British politician William Wilberforce and his fight to end slavery in the British Empire. Though as a young man Wilberforce is torn between politics and the church, he is inspired to action by John Newton, a penitent monk who is haunted by his past as a slave-ship captain. Wilberforce, aided by a small band of radical thinkers and unlikely supporters, he annually presents a bill for abolition to Parliament. When the war with France generates a patriotism in the people that makes opposition to slavery seem seditious, Wilberforce becomes disillusioned, and he retires to his cousin's house, physically ill and emotionally destroyed by his perceived failure, he meets the beautiful and righteous Barbara Spooner, and gains new determination to pursue his dream of abolition.