Under Two Flags

Under Two Flags is the first and the best of the Foreign Legion romances which have consistently enthralled readers and cinema audiences, as well as Ouida's best-known and most imitated work. In order to shield his younger brother, and to protect the name of the titled and wedded Lady Guenevere, the Hon. Bertie Cecil enlists in the second regiment of the Chasseurs d'Afrique, condemning himself to years of danger and hardship under the blazing Algerian sun. His salvation takes the shape of the two women who love him: the camp-follower Cigarette and the Princess Venetia. Out of the triangle formed by the nonchalant hero and his passionate admirers, Ouida created a romance which set the tone for a hundred years of novels and films. (Goodreads)