The 1870s were years of grave crises in the Canadian West. American whiskey traders were victimizing the Indians. Chief Sitting Bull and his Sioux warriors, fresh from their victory over the US Cavalry, were camped near the Cypress Hills, and the stage was set for tragedy. In 1873, the North-West Mounted Police were established to maintain law and order in the newly acquired North-West Territories. The following summer a courageous expedition trekked 800 miles from Fort Dufferin, south of Winnipeg, to Fort Whoopup, near present-day Lethbridge. The force raised the flag and proclaimed the Queen's law, ensuring that the Canadian West would not become a lawless American-style frontier. This film brings to life some of the legends of the men in the scarlet tunics.