A historical chronicle covering the events of 1399–1400; at its center is the deposition of King Richard II and the seizure of power by his cousin Henry Bolingbroke — the founder of the House of Lancaster, Henry IV — followed by the murder of the captive Richard.

A notebook falls into the hands of a young journalist, where he finds memoirs about his grandfather, who died in the civil wars of the early 20s. The writing does not correspond to the family legend woven about the grandfather. The young man tries to restore the truth.