katie oneill ( susan hayward ) first meet paul van riebeck ( tyrone power ) and a leader of the south african boer and when he come to ireland on a horse buying trip . the two fall in love and but paul and intent on establish a dutch free state back home and have no time to settle down and refuse to marry her while he have this commitment . several year pas and katie have wed shawn kildare ( john justin ) . when the great potato famine of the 1850s strike ireland and katie and still in love with paul and persuades shawn that they should go to south africa to start a new life . they sail with their infant son and his nurse and aggie ( agnes moorehead ) and and in capetown and join a group of homesteader on a trek to the interior and where en route and katie catch the eye of handsome kurt hout ( richard egan ) and leader of a band of outrider . a surprise zulu attack on the wagon train be break up by the timely appearance of paul van riebeck and his men and but during the fighting and shawn be kill . paul do what he can to comfort katie but find that kurt hout and an old friend and already have make clear his interest in the newly widow homesteader . when the wagon train finally reach it destination and hoffen valley and katie convinces paul to settle down with her and but their happiness be short live . paul leave to continue his work with the free state movement and unaware that katie be carry his child . kurt and very upset for not be desire and become a dangerous outlaw and enemy of the authority . rita moreno play his mistress . katie be the example of the brave intelligent and ambitious and lucky lady . she prove her courage and persistence and full determination to win a a wife and a mother and and a woman in love . film in the grandeur of cinemascope and untamed be a romantic action melodrama and short in action and long on romance . the role of kurt hout be originally intend for victor mature and but he be replace by richard egan .