In WW1, Captain Stanhope is the commander of a British company fighting against the Germans. The young Lieutenant Raleigh admires the older man who he knows from the prewar days. While Stanhope tries to keep up the image of an exemplary soldier, in fact he is thoroughly disillusioned and fights his despair with alcohol, all the while waiting for the signal to start the foray against the Germans. When it comes, it leads to disaster.