Two boys – the prince Edward and the pauper Tom – are born on the same day. Years later, when young teenage Tom sneaks into the palace garden, he meets the prince. They change clothes with one another before the guards discover them and throw out the prince thinking he's the urchin. No one believes them when they try to tell the truth about which is which. Soon after, the old king dies and the prince will inherit the throne.
故事发生在十九世纪的意大利,一位非常美丽的女子和当地一个有钱人结了婚,谁知道这个有钱人是一个冷酷无情的禽兽,当他发现自己的妻子心里还爱着另外一个男人之后,他残忍的杀死了这个男人。之后,有钱人带着妻子踏上了前往欧洲的旅途,途中,女子因为生产而死,留下了一个婴儿,有钱人将婴儿丢到了修道院。之后,一个苏格兰商人收养了这个可怜的孩子,给他取名为安东尼(弗雷德里克·马奇 Fredric March 饰)。
一晃眼多年过去,安东尼长大成人,和养父家厨娘的女儿安琪拉(奥利维娅·德哈维兰 Olivia de Havilland 饰)相恋了,安琪拉一心想要成为歌剧明星,而安东尼则潜心追随养父从商,两人渐行渐远。