The story begins with an ageing, alcoholic woman (Vivien Leigh) being clapped into debtors' prison in the slums of Calais. In a husky, despairing, whiskey-soaked voice, the former Lady Hamilton narrates the story of her life to her skeptical fellow inmates. In one of the early scenes that launches the flashback, Emma, well past her prime, looks into a mirror and remembers "the face I knew before," the face of the young, lovely girl who captured the imagination of artists - most notably George Romney and Joshua Reynolds.


In the final scene, Emma's cellmate, the Streetgirl (Heather Angel), asks what Emma did after Emma learned of Nelson's death:



The Streetgirl: "And then?"
Emma: "Then what?"
The Streetgirl: "What happened after?"
Emma: "There is no then. There is no after." [7]
Emma Hart's early life as the mistress of the charming but unreliable Charles Francis Greville leads to her meeting with his wealthy uncle Sir William Hamilton (Alan Mowbray), the British ambassador to Naples.




Map of Italy showing Naples
Greville gives Emma to Sir William in exchange for relief on his debts. At first Emma is crushed by this turn of events. Gradually, however, she comes to appreciate her luxurious surroundings and her glamorous new life. She also grows to respect Sir William, who marries her and explains the reasons for Britain's war against Napoleon. When Horatio Nelson (Laurence Olivier) arrives in Naples, Emma is soon deeply attracted to him and is impressed by his passionate insistence on resisting Napoleon's dictatorial rule. She leaves Sir William to live with Nelson, who is also married. Their idyllic life together is threatened by the continuing war and their infidelity to their spouses. Nelson leaves to confront Napoleon's navy in the decisive Battle of Trafalgar. After his death in the battle, she succumbs to alcoholism and spirals down into poverty and oblivion.
Where is the debtors' prison?
slums of Calais