Charles II: The Power and The Passion : Season 1

Penniless and powerless, after nearly a decade in exile from Republican England, Charles II's oldest and dearest friend, the Duke of Buckingham, abandons him and returns home to make his peace with Cromwell. But when loyal minister Sir Edward Hyde brings news of Cromwell's sudden death, the prospect of Charles regaining the Crown seems within his grasp. General Monck picks up on the nation's growing discontent and persuades Parliament to invite Charles Stuart back to take up his Throne.

With no sign of a Royal pregnancy, the succession is a thorny issue. Charles's impetuous brother and heir to the Throne, James, Duke of York, complicates matters with his conversion to Catholicism.With the prospect of a Catholic King an anathema to the Protestant English, Barbara is busy priming Charles's eldest son, Monmouth, for greatness: he might be a *******, but he's a Protestant *******. When Catharine becomes pregnant, Barbara's scheming seems to have been for nothing but, tragically,

As fire blazes through London, destroying whole swathes of the city, Charles and James fight valiantly to contain it. Many see the fire as God's judgement on Charles and his licentious Court and, as awareness of Barbara's depravity grows, the Monarch's popularity wanes. But Barbara is about to be eclipsed in Charles's heart as he falls under the spell of sparky, streetwise actress Nell Gwynn. Minette, Charles's beloved little sister, is sent from France as Louis XIV's envoy.The endless

The trail leads to the squalid but charismatic Titus Oates, whose accusations take in every eminent Catholic, including James and Queen Catharine herself. In the atmosphere of panic, a witch-hunt ensues and Charles is powerless to save the many innocent people whose lives are blighted by Oates's lies. Charles's position is further weakened when Parliament obtains letters alluding to the treaties with France. As Shaftesbury pushes for the exclusion of James as Charles's heir, Charles responds