Elisabeth Joyce, a young Irish historian, arrives in Barcelona in November 1905, just in time to witness the assault of 200 soldiers armed with axes on the printing press of the weekly magazine Cu-cut and the editorial office of the newspaper La veu de Catalunya.

Elisabeth witnesses these events with fear and the political storm they unleash, pitting the army against Catalan forces. Soldiers from all over Spain show solidarity with the assaulting officers, except for one who stands up decisively and firmly to his colleagues. He is the Lieutenant Colonel in Chief of the Engineering Command of Lleida. His name is Francesc Macià Llussà.