In this silent film adaptation of Anthony Hope's classic novel, Rudolf Rassendyll (Lewis Stone) visits the small European country of Ruritania to see his distant cousin's coronation as king. Rassendyll bears an unusual resemblance to the king, so when the ruler is poisoned and kidnapped, Rassendyll is forced to pose as the new monarch. As he works with the ruler's men to discover who is behind the kidnapping, Rassendyll slowly falls in love with the king's fiancée, Princess Flavia (Alice Terry).