Joss Colby, manager of the Shield ironworks, epitomised the revolution which was changing England from a rural society into an industrial power. lie was a ruthless man, with an unshakeable vision of the future - both for himself and for the ironworks. But his vision was shared neither by the local squire, Sir Matthew Arandall, who resisted all his new ideas, nor by the hostile ironworkers. When his plans were threatened, it was by neither of these. Only a kitchen maid stood between him and possession of the ironworks he coveted. Hannah Noble was illegitimate, an outcast in the eyes of her family and the local gentry - but she was a woman of iron.