Delegates from Poland arrive in Dresden to ask Kosciuszko to come back and stand at the head of the uprising. In Krakow, funds for an army are being raised; the peasants are preparing to fight. Kosciuszko arrives in Krakow and is made leader of the uprising. He goes to Racławice; there's a nice battle, victory, and a parade. Intertwined into these events is a story about the love of Lieutenant Jan Milewski for Hanka, whose uncle promised her to another.