The story revolves around a 10-year-old girl named Tamsyn, who has been orphaned and is being raised by her uncle, a shipowner in
Bideford. She is brought to live in London by another uncle, who works as a
swordsmith, or armourer, being the owner of the house after which the novel is titled. Tamsyn is a dark-complected girl, contrasting with the entirely red headed family which has taken her in; showing Sutcliff's reoccurring themes of outsiders, belonging, red heads, and light vs. dark. She is homesick for her
West Country life, but slowly adapts to London city life and being part of a larger family. Through the novel she witnesses
Morris dancers on
May Day; visits the market in
Cheapside, the
Billingsgate Fish Market, and the
Royal Dockyard in
Deptford. She watches King
Henry VIII and his current queen
Anne Boleyn proceed up the
Thames in his royal barge, transiting from his
palace in
Greenwich to his
palace in
Westminster. The mother of the house tells them the tale of
Tam Lin on
Halloween, which parallels the theme of a girl who struggles to pursue her dreams. She watches
tall ships at the docks, consistently showing a strong interest in sailing, which she shares with one of the Armourer's sons, Piers. Both Piers and Tamsyn dream of sailing away and exploring the word, adventuring with the backdrop of the
Age of Exploration. Piers is restrained by being bound as an
apprentice to his father, while Tamsyn is restrained by being a girl. The oldest son, who had been thought drowned, returns to the family on
Christmas Eve while they are home
singing Christmas Carols. This frees Piers from his obligation, so he is welcomed to sail with the ship-owning uncle in the coming spring. Tamsyn is overjoyed, as he has promised to bring her along when he is older and becomes
master of a ship. ==Language==