1805: Sharpe is in Bombay, awaiting passage back to England on board the Calliope, along with Lord William Hale and his beautiful young wife. But his voyage is interrupted by the French warship, 'The Revenant, 'carrying a secret treaty. Unintentionally, Sharpe ends up in the middle of one of the most momentous naval battles of all time, Trafalgar, as the combined fleets of Spain and France face up against Nelson's English navy.