Return of the Hero

Romance brings two warring families together in this historical drama. As citizens fight for independence in 1810s Lithuania, Tadeusz, the son of a murderer, and Zosia, a young woman, come together for a wedding against a backdrop of changing politics, ancient traditions, and the uncertain future of a country.

In 1812, during the French period, large parts of Germany are occupied by the troops of Napoleon. Several paramilitary Freikorps units battle the French forces, among them the Black Brunswickers led by the 'Black Duke' Frederick William of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel. After the War of the Fifth Coalition, the Black Hussars are pursued by Napoleon throughout the country, but frequently take refuge with the noble-minded German people.

Several years after the battle of Waterloo, a former soldier from Shoreditch sits in a London inn reminiscing about the brave and determined officer who took him to hell and back. The narrator is Rifleman Cooper, and the officer whose fame he recalls is the legendary Richard Sharpe.

In czarist Russia, a neurotic soldier and his distant cousin formulate a plot to assassinate Napoleon.

The love story of young Countess Natasha Rostova and Count Pierre Bezukhov is interwoven with the Great Patriotic War of 1812 against Napoleon's invading army.

Defiant's crew is part of a fleet-wide movement to present a petition of grievances to the Admiralty. Violence must be no part of it. The continual sadism of Defiant's first officer makes this difficult, and when the captain is disabled, the chance for violence increases.

The story of courtesan and dance-hall girl Emma Hamilton, including her relationships with Sir William Hamilton and Admiral Horatio Nelson and her rise and fall, set during the Napoleonic Wars.

The romanticized gallant adventures of Pauline Bonaparte, Napoleon's sister. First "engaged" to the Conventionnel Fréron, then separated from him by her brother for political reasons, Pauline joined Napoleon in the Italian army, where she fell in love with the comté de Canouville. But the First Consul married her to his friend, General Leclerc, whom she followed on the expedition to Saint-Domingue. Unconcerned about fidelity, she began to love her husband just as he was about to die of yellow fever. Back in France, she was soon consoled by other gallants. Napoleon, now emperor, hastened to marry her off to Prince Borghese, but he was unable to make her love him. She soon returned to Paris to lead the life of a gallant woman, incognito, and again met Canouville, whom the emperor tried in vain to separate from her. But soon the Russian campaign begins, and her lover is killed. All that remains for Pauline, this time disconsolate, is to reconcile with her brother on the road to exile.

May 5, 1821. Napoleon Bonaparte, deposed emperor exiled on the island of St. Helena, is about to take his last breath. The son of a Corsican family, he has been close to death on many occasions since, as a young captain in the revolutionary army, he seized Toulon from the royalists in 1793.

During the Napoleonic Wars, when the French have occupied Spain, some Spanish guerrilla soldiers are going to move a big cannon across Spain in order to help the British defeat the French. A British officer is there to accompany the Spanish and along the way, he falls in love with the leader's girl.

Captain Horatio Hornblower leads his ship HMS Lydia on a perilous transatlantic voyage, during which his faithful crew battle both a Spanish warship and a ragged band of Central American rebels.

Portugal, 1809. Fast moving, hard-hitting action adventure filmed on location in the Crimea, Portugal and England brings to the screen all the danger, romance and sheer spectacle of one of the bloodiest periods in English warfare. Richard Sharpe rises through the ranks of Wellington’s army by his courageous and daring exploits. He and his men operate behind French lines, risking their lives to undermine Napoleon's forces.

Spain, 1812. The Duke of Wellington plans to lay siege to Badajoz. A murderous figure from Sharpe's past uses a beautiful woman to revenge himself on Sharpe, now the father of her child. Sharpe has reason to be happy, he holds his daughter for the first time and is given command of the Light Company again, together with his captaincy. But will his happiness be short lived?

Spain, 1813. The dashing and heroic Major Richard Sharpe pits his wits against El Casco, a terrifying partisan leader who has a chilling way of dealing with his enemies. Sharpe's mission, to trade guns for deserters, is imperilled by the beautiful and desirable Ellie, who follows him into the hills where there is rumoured to be hidden Aztec gold.

June, 1813. Major Richard Sharpe's men are in mortal danger - not from the French, but from the bureaucrats of Whitehall. Unless reinforcements can be brought from England, the depleted South Essex will be disbanded, their troops scattered throughout the army. Determined not to see his regiment die, Sharpe returns to England and uncovers a nest of well-bred, high-ranking traitors, any one of whom could utterly destroy his career with a word, or a stroke of the pen. Sharpe is forced into the most desperate gamble of his life - and not even the influence of the Price Regent may be enough to save him.

Winter, 1813. Sharpe marries his sweetheart, Jane Gibbons, but has to leave her immediately to go on a dangerous mission in the Pyrenees, to capture a French fort. While Sharpe is battling with the French, his wife contracts a deadly fever which has swept through the British camp and endangers her life. Sharpe encounters his old enemy, Ducos and is compelled to stay at the fort and fight for his country, knowing that even if he survives he may never see his beloved bride again.

France, 1815. Sharpe seems to have settled down for life on a tranquil French farm with his new partner Lucille when the sudden news of Napoleon's return from exile compels him to go back to the army to fight in the great Battle of Waterloo. He joins the staff of Wellington's ally, the Prince of Orange. Once again reunited with the Chosen Men, Sharpe abandons his inept commander to organise the defence of the British key positions on the farm of La Haie Sainte and plays a courageous and important role in securing one of Britain's most famous victories.

Portugal, 1813. Action and romance follow Sharpe as his chosen men risk their lives on dangerous and heroic missions. Sharpe has to do battle with a gang of deserters led by an evil renegade, who uses hostages - including Sharpe's old flame - as innocent pawns in his wicked game to win a ransom. This is only the beginning of the problems facing Sharpe. A far greater threat is on the horizon. One where failure would mean the end of the war for the Allied armies.

Spain, 1813. Sharpe is unwittingly caught up in a French plot; he is convicted of the murder of a Spanish nobleman and sentenced to death. This time he will need more than just his legendary courage to survive. In a desperate attempt to clear his name, Sharpe is forced to venture deep into enemy territory to capture La Marquesa, a beautiful French spy, who alone can prove his innocence.

Franco-Spanish Border, 1813. Sean Bean returns as the courageous Major Richard Sharpe, his latest mission to protect the identity of the master spy, El Mirador. Sharpe captures Colonel Leroux who has been sent by Napoleon to assassinate El Mirador but Leroux escapes. In an ensuing battle, Sharpe's sword is destroyed and he is left for dead. He is lovingly nursed back to health by a beautiful young girl who has been rendered mute after witnessing the slaughter of her companions. Armed with a new sword forged by the faithful Sergeant Harper, Sharpe continues his mission to protect the life of El Mirador and seek retribution.