Denmark in the 18th century. To increase tax revenues...
...Danish kings try to domesticate and settle the vast moorland of the Jutland peninsular.
But nature is unforgiving, the soil is poor, the countryside is infested with vagabonds...
...and for decades, all those who are sent out there, fail.
The moorland cannot be farmed.
COPENHAGEN 1755
POOR-HOUSE FOR WAR VETERANS
THE ROYAL TREASURY
Your Majesty...
The carriage is waiting.
Yes, thank you... We'll leave when I'm ready.
Ludvig Kahlen? We're ready for you.
Chancellor Paulli.
Who do we have here?
Mr Paulli, Captain Kahlen is home, after 25 years in the German army.
He's seeking permission to build on the Jutland moorland.
Very nice drawings, soldier.
It's just a waste of your time.
The moorland can't be used.
All land can be used.
A third of the kingdom is wasted. It's a disgrace to our country.
I can conquer the soil and build the first property on the moor.
Listen to me. There's just heather, rock and sand.
Nothing can be grown there.
It's been demonstrated, over and over again, by better men than you.
With all due respect, I'd like to ask for an audience with the king.
Yes, of course.
Will someone please send for His Majesty?
We're not wasting any more state money on cultivating the heath-land.
Especially not on a conceited soldier in a shitty uniform.
Show him out.
I don't want a penny. I'll finance it myself.
How?
I have my captain's pension.
That's virtually nothing.
Let's say that you manage to build a property.
What do you think should be the reward for your generous offer?
A noble title...
...with associated manor and servants.
Could you wait outside, please?
He's a nobody.
Father unknown.
His mother was a maid in a mansion.
He was a gardener before his time in the German army.
He managed to become a captain, despite his low status.
His demands are insane.
The demands are immaterial.
We can promise him to become Czar of Russia.
Nobody can farm that moorland.
But so long as he's out there, we can say to his majesty...
...that we are still struggling for his beloved moorland project.
Captain Kahlen.
Please come in... We have good news.
T H E B A S T A R D
Help! Help me!
A little coin for a poor little thing all alone in the wild?
What a nice man you are. You must have a lot of money.
Why the hell have you chosen to build a house in my county?
The hands of the hard-working shall prevail.
- What's in the boxes? - I'd like to know too.
They came all the way from Mecklenburg.
I don't understand all the secrecy.
Are these all of my men?
I need more than that if the house is to be finished before autumn.
No energetic man with a life ahead of him...
...wants to work himself to death on the heath.
I need three times as many.
Then you'll have to find them in the neighbouring villages.
I have boils on my arse the size of swan eggs.
They don't like the road.
Besides, the forests are full of vagabonds.
Before I forget... 5 riksdalers.
As sheriff, I'll be paid for the work of getting everything on the list.
Plus hiring horses to take the shit to the arsehole of the world.
Sorry, Father.
Captain, can I show you something?
I think I may have a solution to your problem about workers.
You've no idea how happy I am that you've chosen our parish.
It's about time that God's light shone on the moor.
Come...
I believe I may have found a home for you.
Johannes Eriksen, an experienced farmer, and his wife Ann-Barbara.
It's illegal to hire people fleeing bondage.
They've escaped from a brutal master.
Eriksen can work hard and Ann-Barbara is a good housekeeper.
We can work for half the wage, Sir.
We only ask for a room so Ann-Barbara doesn't have to sleep with the men.
One room, two meals a day, no pay.
You won't get a better chance in your situation.
I'll be having important visitors when the house is finished.
I'll expect it to be maintained to a high standard.
Is that understood?
It will be fine.
You'll never be looked for on the moorland.
FOUR MONTHS LATER AT HALD MANOR
Well, Bondo...
I stand here like an idiot wasting the best season of the year.
Cheeks are burning... the flesh is willing.
Portraits with a bear are the fashion all over northern Europe, Mr de Schinkel.
Where is my cousin?
She is out training her horse.
She just has it running around on a lunge rope.
A Captain Kahlen is currently building a house on the moor.
"King's House" he calls it.
You said there'd be no more fools coming to the moor.
That it was only a matter of time before we could buy it all.
Kahlen?
Yes. Ludvig Kahlen.
Find out who he is.
Of course.
KING'S HOUSE
I've had better stew in the army.
If you'd bought a cow we'd have thicker milk.
Can't have a cow.
If I'm to keep the house in a high standard, I need a cow.
I've made a detailed account of my budget for this place.
If it showed a cow was needed there would be a cow.
Then it gets no better.
Everything should be in neat little rows.
The floor should be dust-free.
The food should sit perfectly in the centre of the plate.
He carries on like a fine gentleman.
But his clothes are tattered and his hands are horny.
He's odd.
The priest said we can trust him.
We can trust nobody.
We'll never get out of here without pay.
We'll only stay here for one season...
Until they've stopped looking for us.
One season at King's House.
Then we go to the coast.
I want to see the sea.
Where are you going?
Out to our odd gentleman.
He shouldn't go out alone.
We need marl to do this.
We'll get clay from the sea.
The heather will be burned, the soil will be fertilised.
It'll take at least six months before anything can be grown.
May I ask what you plan to grow?
You are welcome to ask.
But you won't get an answer.
Come here!
Thanks for the goddamn chicken, Mister!
- What's going on? - It's the vagabonds.
What the hell are you doing?
Now all the vagabonds know that they can come here and steal without risk.
Why did you let her go?
You can't get too close to them. The devil protects them.
You saw how dark she was.
Stupid superstition. She is a beggar's child.
She was taken in the South, so is dark. Next time you stop her.
We should not be cursed by anyone. Try to stop her yourself.
Pack your things. You're finished here.
It's amazing what you're doing.
You already get a sense of life being out here.
Johannes.
Isn't that Preisler?
Johannes...
Would you be so kind as to see to my horse in the barn?
Captain Kahlen?
I am Major Preisler.
I am here for Frederik de Schinkel von Hald...
Owner of 130 properties and the district magistrate.
Mr de Schinkel asked me to invite you to dinner at the estate this evening.
I'd be honoured.
I hope you can dress differently.
I have my uniform.
One of Mr de Schinkel's bondmen left recently.
Rumour has it that he's still in the district.
Johannes Eriksen and his wife.
Know anything?
I have the men you see here.
Schinkel. That's who they've run away from?
The district big-wig, who I'm supposed to visit?
My uncle loved dogs.
He wrote in his will that Frederik was not to take down...
...a single portrait of a dog on the estate.
I think he was fonder of his dogs than his own children.
Edel Helene Leising...
Frederik's cousin.
Captain Ludvig Kahlen.
Are you related to the Norwegian Count Leising?
That is my father.
Do you you know a lot about Norwegian nobility?
No...just what everyone knows. That your father is a close friend of the king.
Here he is.
Ludvig Kahlen... Welcome to Hald Manor.
- Mr Schinkel, thank you... - de Schinkel.
My father's name was Schinkel, but I changed it to "de Schinkel".
de Schinkel, sorry.
From gardener to decorated captain is an achievement.
It took 25 years as well.
25 years?
Do you know how long it takes for a nobleman to become a captain?
Six months.
You must have hated the powder-puffs who advanced before you...
...just because they had the right blood in their veins.
Those are the rules.
Said by a true soldier.
So...you're going to try to farm the moor?
I'm going to build the king's first property out there.
The moor is God's nature in all its splendour.
Why castrate a wild beast?
Did not God put man on earth to create civilisation?
- Are we not civilised out here? - I didn't say that.
God has nothing to do with civilisation.
God is chaos.
Life is chaos.
I don't agree.
You fought in the Silesian wars.
Was it civilised?
No, war is chaos.
But the winner is the one who can to control chaos.
What do you think of my fiancée? Isn't she pretty to look at?
Are we engaged?
I don't remember saying yes, Frederik.
As if it wasn't already settled.
Her father begged me on his knees, to take her.
No complaints.
Her family wants my fortune, but I drew the longest straw.
Getting into the nobility is priceless.
So father said.
Your father was right.
He created this from nothing.
Two cows and a plough.
Now he just lies rotting in the ground.
Life is chaos, Ludvig.
A cunt... a prick... shit... bloody... chaos.
We can't control shit.
Once we recognise that, we can enjoy our insignificant lives.
Everything you've said since we sat at the table has been ridiculous.
Sorry, Captain.
My cousin needs lessons in civilised behaviour.
Why am I doing here?
You are here ...
...because you've built on my land without permission.
- Your land? - Yes, de Schinkel's land.
The moorland belongs to the king.
All uncultivated land belongs to the king.
Are you a bit deaf?
This is my land.
Do you have a boundary map?
I can't be bothered looking for it.
Then we must get a surveyor here.
Or ask the magistrate... That's me.
The magistrate's decision is enough.
We've no more to talk about.
Miss Edel.
Your mother was a cook on Count Raben's estate, wasn't she?
He was a family friend.
A god-gifted billy-goat who humped any servant with tits and a snatch.
And you are like the snot out of his nose.
It's almost uncanny.
Was it he who put you in the army?
My father did that... when he tired of his bastards.
My little half-brothers... with longing in their eyes...
...and dirty fingernails.
And now the bastard would like to become a big man on the moor.
What do you get for success? An estate?
A fine title?
"von Kahlen"?
- What's that? - A contract.
You can try your luck on Mr de Schinkel's land.
He will help you with men, provisions and materials.
In return, you pay him 50 per cent of your future income.
Should settlers come, they become tenant farmers of Mr de Schinkel.
No, thank you.
I would strongly advise you to accept the offer.
It is the king's land.
I work for the king.
Woof-woof!
Not many people would dare to contradict Frederik like that.
Will I see you again, Captain?
I can't see how.
There's a harvest festival in a month. All the powder puffs are coming.
First Sunday in September.
I don't think I'm invited.
You can come as my guest.
I can invite anyone I want.
Here...
So you won't forget me by then.
Why is no one working? Where are the men?
Gone.
Major Preisler knocked on my door last night...
... and asked me to ride here at once...
...and offer your men double-pay on one of de Schinkel's farms.
And you did that without hesitation?
I rode all night and my arse hurts.
Please don't shoot the messenger.
You couldn't know that it was his land.
We can't find any new workers.
No one dares defy Schinkel.
Is everyone mad?
I have the King's authority that I can be here.
I have the law on my side.
It doesn't matter.
If Frederik Schinkel wants something, he continues until he gets it.
He's all alone out there now.
He hasn't even burned the heather.
He may have no more than 100 riksdalers left of his captain's pension.
100 riksdalers?
- That's nothing. - No.
He'll never get the land ready.
And when winter comes... he'll sign.
"Dear Captain, Enjoying yourself building a property on the moor, without men?"
"Here is a small gift that may bring a little joy to your everyday life."
"Frederik de Schinkel."
It can decorate the hen-house.
I know where we can get men.
Hey, hey, hey! Come here!
Let go of me, damn it!
What's your name, you little thief?
Ann-May-Mouse, damn it.
- How old are you? - Two.
No, you're not.
So I'm 35 then.
I don't know, damn it.
Where are the gypsies you're travelling with?
Where are they camped?
Do you remember this?
Tomorrow morning you'll show me where they are.
Understand?
They'll kill me.
That's not my problem.
Poor little Ann-May-Mouse. She only lived a short and hard life.
She had not eaten for eleven days and hunger forced her into thieving.
Her parents didn't want her and sold her to the vagabonds...
Stop it. I don't want to hear it.
No, no, no! No, no, no, no!
No, no, no, let me go!
Useless darkie. You'll get your punishment later.
What are you doing here, mister?
I have work...
...for all of you.
10 riksdalers to go in the fields until autumn.
Which fields? You don't own a field.
The moor.
The moor!
A fine soldier like you knows that we aren't allowed to work... by law.
You could go to jail for it.
Are we in agreement?
20 riksdalers.
And I want that there...
Your medal.
I always wanted to be a general.
You can't have it.
And I'm no general. I'm a captain.
Salute General Hector!
Do you remember when we faced the devil out here on the moor?
In the form of a young boy. We ran!
Now he is the one to run. Because now the general is here!
Now the general is here!
Now the General is working! And the devil...
Make sure to keep the fire under control!
- Hey! A shilling for a night. - No, no. Thank you.
Take the stick, mister.
Once you take that stick, you belong to her clan.
You can have her for 5 riksdalers.
Then we'll get rid of that darkie.
We're not in the same clan.
Understand?
Freshly shot game for the harvest festival.
I shot two.
You will all have a taste and a wonderful evening.
You'll all live it up!
But first of all, I want to live.
Have you seen the animals? I shot two.
I've disturbing news from the moor.
Kahlen has hired a mob of gypsies to work for him.
But Preisler's also discovered something else.
Three loads as close to the coast as you can find it.
Remember... it must be white clay.
It must be white clay.
Mr de Schinkel liked this one.
Then he can touch it himself.
Mine will be simpler.
Modest, but still feminine.
You mean something that a military man would appreciate?
You should stay far away from Schinkel.
Everyone who's anyone is coming tonight.
Everyone who's anyone?
Merchants.
People I'll be dealing with.
I guess that's not the only reason you go there.
You shouldn't meddle in my private affairs.
You're a housekeeper.
Now it's as good as it can be.
Those fine folk will have to accept you as you are.
But you must remember to hide that seam.
Thank God you're here.
I almost didn't recognise you.
Ludvig Kahlen.
Captain, the moor-conqueror.
de Schinkel.
Nice to see you.
But you can't be here with that lousy wig.
I can't expose my other guests to it.
There are no lice in my wig.
I see how it creeps and crawls.
Lise has a wig here that you can borrow.
Come on... Now!
Yes...
That's it.
Now you're as good as new.
Enjoy the party.
Come with me, Sir. Miss is expecting you.
Miss Edel.
Captain.
It was a gift from your cousin.
He's a spoilt child...
...trying desperately to impress his father's friends.
He drinks from morning to night...
...and brags of all the female servants he's bedded.
He seems to think that I find it amusing or attractive.
I have to go away.
I have to get away from here.
What does your father say?
He only thinks about the money.
He's forbidden me to go home.
I have to stay here over winter and try to see the good in Frederik.
He wants us to be married within a year.
Unless I can come up with...
...a better alternative for him.
Can I do that?
A man who makes the king's highest wish come true...
...with the title and reward that comes with it...
...could perhaps become worthy enough to marry you...
...if that's what you're asking.
I didn't think it was that obvious.
You haven't had many lengthy conversations with women...
...have you?
This is the longest conversation I've had, that's for sure.
And you'll succeed in building your property out there?
Yes.
Sorry to interrupt the magic here, but I want to reveal a surprise...
-and I can't wait any longer. It's something very special.
This farmer disappeared last spring.
I'd treated him and his wife with respect, even love...
...as I treat all my people.
And he thanked me by running off.
He was hiding with Ludvig Kahlen out on the moor.
But enough about that. It's a long story.
If you interfere with a legal peasant punishment...
...you yourself will be regarded as a lawbreaker.
Don't worry. The water is not as hot as it looks.
One more time, for the beautiful girls.
One more time for the beautiful women.
I think that it would be a good idea to stop now.
The people are not with you.
No! Do it one more time for the beautiful girls.
Frederik!
That's enough.
Do it one more time now! Do it for the beautiful girls!
You've killed him.
I am fully entitled to punish my own tenants.
Nobody could know that he would die.
What do you say, Bondo?
Yes, that's right.
It was an accident.
So, the farmer must have been sensitive or...
Leave him alone.
He's mine.
He's not yours anymore.
According to the law, he belongs to God now.
Then take him.
Ludvig!
I know you use gypsies as workers.
You're not allowed to harbour outlawed gypsies.
You are ordered to send them away.
It goes like this.
If the vagabonds are not gone by tomorrow morning...
...we'll remove them by force.
You as well.
Ludvig, I can turn a blind eye... if you just sign our contract.
That hurts me.
You didn't strike me as a man who was afraid of anything.
We were in agreement.
I can't get the soil ready if you don't finish the work.
You don't have to leave.
You can work at night, when no one is looking.
Are you an idiot?
There's a boiled man out there on your land.
We don't want to fucking die for your moorland project.
What do we do?
You'll never make it through winter, without money or men.
I don't need men. I can do it myself.
The land will be cultivated this spring.
And what about Schinkel?
Schinkel takes turns with the servant girls.
He always has one or two guards, so you don't run away.
When Johannes and I got married, he raged because I wasn't his.
And now he's killed him.
Schinkel will stop at nothing until he's won.
Where were you planning to go?
As far away as I can get.
I'd like to ask you to stay.
I can't work the fields and keep house too.
I need you.
As housekeeper?
My husband is dead and you're afraid that the floor won't be swept!
Or that everything isn't as perfect as it usually is!
I can pay you.
With what?
You've no money.
When the king hears...
Don't talk about the king as if he's your friend.
You've never met him. Never will.
He doesn't know you exist.
What is Schinkel afraid of?
What happens to him if there are properties out here?
Then he loses his power and becomes an insignificant little man.
I'll do the work of three men, so I shall get double pay.
And a fifth of the harvest.
A tenth.
And I want to know what you intend to grow.
What is it?
Potatoes.
They grow them in Germany and France.
They are hardy.
They can withstand anything except frost.
My mother was a cook.
On an estate.
She was in the same situation as you.
With lord of the manor.
You're the son of a landowner?
He was my father, yes. But I wasn't his son.
Damn, fucking skoal!
What are you doing here?
I ran away from those filthy pigs.
I don't want to be sold.
Come on...!
You'll have to find the others again.
You can't stay here.
I can't take care of a child.
We don't have enough food for ourselves.
Goddamn thief, goddamn thief...
You've stolen my knife and tomorrow at seven you'll lose your life.
A giant toe-biter! Get it, pappy!
Are you stupid? It eats children.
No, it doesn't.
It is much more afraid of you than you are to it. Let's go.
Madrum, look! I'm holding a toe biter!
I don't understand your gypsy words, Ann-May-Mouse.
Madrum. It comes from Latin.
It's a root word for mother.
Madrum. Godman.
And Pappy.
Yes, that's good. Now lets' get to work.
But the miller took little Carl Andersen and threw him into the lake.
And then everyone knew that the miller drowned children every night.
Why doesn't someone do something about that bugger?
It's coming. You want to hear more?
Yes, damn it, what a bugger!
You have to stop swearing.
Why the hell didn't he just fly to the kids if he could fly?
The miller had himself had 4 children.
You have to drink it. Your lungs must rest.
Her body can't fight the illness. She has to have food.
Gruel and water are not enough.
That's what we have.
We have potatoes.
We don't touch them.
We have one goat left.
We have to survive on the milk all winter.
- There are 20 sacks of potatoes... - We don't touch them!
Edel's father says that she babbles on about Ludvig Kahlen in her letters home.
You don't think she likes him?
She's a realist. She'd never choose a peasant...
...before the most prosperous man in the district.
Never.
No, she wouldn't.
She's smarter than that.
So what does she know, that we don't?
He received a shipment all the way from Germany.
Maybe it's potatoes.
Potatoes?
Don't they say they can grow in almost any kind of soil?
Ann-May-Mouse, go inside and rest.
Merry Christmas, Ludvig.
You were hoping it was Edel.
What are you doing here, Schinkel?
"de Schinkel", Ludvig. "de Schinkel".
Are you still here?
You only come home when you get tired of the moor.
You will always be my little Ann-Barbara.
I've actually come in good faith.
Leftovers from Christmas dinner.
There's both pork and cake.
You might have to gnaw a bit, to get the meat off the bones.
Get in where it's warm. I've got good news for you.
I've not been reasonable. I know.
You come out here on the moor with your big dream.
Then I just sit up there in the manor and ruin it all for you.
Aren't you curious?
It's money.
Yes, please.
It's 2,000 riksdalers.
That's enough for two properties...
....and to hire as many men as you want.
You can live like a king.
I'll not work for you.
You'll not work for anyone.
Just go somewhere else and farm the moors.
As long as it's far away from me...
...so we don't have to stare at each other.
Start over somewhere else.
Then the purse there is yours.
So we have an agreement?
I want to go home to my warm stove.
One more thing.
You must of course make a report to the Royal Treasury...
...that this is my land and always has been.
Ludvig.
The goat is worth 100 times more than a shitty sack of potatoes.
You know that.
What if the harvest fails? Ludvig, don't... Ludvig!
I know it's Mysling.
I don't hear her out there anymore.
Tell me again.
What happens when the settlers arrive, Pappy?
When the settlers come, we can use the whole moor...
...and then the king will come and visit us.
The big chief.
Yes...
Then the big chief comes to visit us.
There'll be fireplaces in every room...
...and we'll have sealed windows.
And you'll get all the food you can eat.
And we'll have animals in the barn.
As many animals as Noah had on his ark.
I've given my blanket to Ann-May-Mouse.
I just need to get the heat up.
I know that your heart belongs to another...
So does mine.
Is there any more muesli?
- When are they coming up? - In two or three months.
And then there'll be a lot more of them.
Hundreds of sacks.
Fucking hell! Hundreds?
One more.
Frost!
Blankets are not enough.
Take the heather. Take the heather!
Pappy, a seeding!
Pappy, Pappy, a seedling!
A seedling! Come and see!
A seedling, Pappy! A seedling!
And it was you who found it, Ann-May-Mouse.
And it was you who found it.
"Cultivated on the moor. L. Kahlen."
Do you realise what this means, Mr Paulli?
- It took us 50 years to get here. - Stop it, Mr Paulli...
You're acting as if he's invented the wheel.
- It took a year to grow one sack. - 80 sacks. According to this.
- His Majesty the King! - Your Majesty.
We are said to have received a consignment of potatoes...
...from the Jutland moors.
That's right, but...
This is a great day for Denmark.
Send settlers there and make sure to send a suitable reward.
What?
Miss...
The captain has managed to grow potatoes on the moor.
Where did you hear that?
Bondo's chambermaid.
He's now the Royal Surveyor.
50 settlers are on their way from Germany.
I have never doubted. Never.
Neither has God.
And speaking of Our Lord, I'll leave you now for a while.
Tomorrow morning I will go to Odense.
Then you have your head in a bucket.
Then to Copenhagen for the money...
...for the first church on the moor.
Skoal! Pancakes!
Skoal.
Lichen...
...peat... is often... nutty...
Nutritious.
"Nutty" is something completely different.
Nutritious.
Ludvig?
Are you Ludvig Kahlen?
Welcome to King's House.
You who stand here today will go down in history...
...as the King's first settlers on the Danish moors.
Building materials for your houses are on their way.
You can camp in the valley, out of the wind...
...and rest after your journey.
We have bread and meat for everyone.
What is she doing here?
She works here.
She helps us with the animals and the land surveying.
Ann-May-Mouse, come.
No.
Her kind brings misfortune and death.
If we are to stay, she must go.
I'll keep her from your wives and children.
She'll stay in the house.
You'll not notice her.
Let time pass and they'll realise that you're not dangerous at all.
It feels like I stink of something.
They're the ones that have something wrong with them.
They're afraid of you even though they should know better.
Just as once, you were afraid of little beetles.
I thought you said that you don't stink.
Stop teasing. You're bad at it.
There's someone in here who stinks.
You smell like horse piss!
What did you say?
I've never... That's the worst thing I ever heard!
Two steps to the right.
That's it!
And then you write "220" in this column.
A two, a two and a circle.
Won't the wigged mister be angry when we're so close to his castle?
Maybe he will.
But he's no longer in charge here.
Dearest Frederik.
Looks like you can remain an important figure out here...
...even though settlers have arrived.
But...
Ludvig Kahlen is Royal Surveyor now.
If you fight with him, you risk everything.
You must make peace with him.
Then tell me right now that you'll marry me.
What is holding you back?
You say I'm still an important figure.
So say yes.
Say yes.
You don't think I know about your plan, do you?
You've probably already spread your legs for him.
Have you?
Let go of me. Let go of me. Let go of me!
Come on...
Hit me again.
- Lord... - What are you doing?
What is it?
No, no!
Stop, stop, stop! Stop it, stop it!
Stop it, Frederik!
You're crazy. You're crazy.
Kahlen and his potato-Germans will get off my moor, Bondo.
He's going away.
It's this way... There's plenty of food in there.
- What's going on? - I think I was dreaming.
Stay here.
Easy, easy. Steady.
Go inside and lock the doors.
Yes...
Clean-cut... It wasn't the wolves.
They must have smelled the blood.
What's happening? Half our animals are dead. Who did it?
Peter?
Peter!
- Peter. - Vera!
Vera!
What horse is that you're riding?
You've killed two innocent people.
I hope you have strong evidence for such a preposterous claim.
But I'm only a district magistrate.
They were under the protection of the king.
Know what...?
I think you've been visited by brigands.
Several of my farms have been affected.
Once they've got the taste of blood...
...they come again and again and again.
Stay away from the moor.
Is that understood?
Chaos, Ludvig.
You can plan as madly as you want to...
Life is chaos.
Why is it so hard for you to accept that?
Can I have a glass of water, please?
Sure you can.
The well is just outside.
- What? - Ann-Barbara.
We'd like to be left alone.
Of course.
I thought she was your housekeeper.
She is.
You shouldn't have come.
I know who killed the settlers.
Major Preisler and his friend Romer came to the manor with 4 men in chains.
They must have taken them from the prison.
- Are they still at the manor? - No.
They haven't stopped.
Is there somewhere else they could be...?
Where they can hide?
Frederik's hunting lodge.
What are you going to do?
You'd better go back, now.
Come here.
See you.
I know who killed Peter and Vera...
And I know where they are.
We would never have come here...
...if we'd known you were at war with a lord of the manor.
- You should have told us. - It's the king's land.
The law is on our side.
The attackers are coming back.
Do you understand?
We must stop them.
Have any of you been in the army?
None of us will lift a finger...
...until you send the devil-girl away.
She has nothing to do with this.
We don't want to hear it, Kahlen!
We said she was bad luck.
Now two of our people are dead.
Send her away, or we leave.
And then you can forget about your settlement.
What are you saying?
We can't just send her away. She's our child.
- Then let them go. - Stop.
I have no choice.
Yes, you do.
But everything must fit Ludvig Kahlen's grand plan.
You just want your noble title...
...so you can mix with fine people.
What do you want that I should do?
I've no choice.
There is a convent in Odense where they take in homeless children.
She gets food and a bed...
...but she has to work for her food.
You'll be happy where you're going.
There's a lot of other children there.
So...
Yes...
You'll have a good life.
You've learned to read.
You know all about caring for animals.
Now you must be strong.
So... Go!
Pappy!
How long are we going to stay in this hole?
Until the work is done.
12 years in the penitentiary. And he calls this "a hole"?
I'm going inside to rest.
We'll ride in an hour. Get your weapons ready.
What the hell is going on?
The Germans attacked us.
I was the only one who escaped.
Those damn potato farmers!
Everything was done with military precision.
Led by Kahlen.
And you're standing here drinking!
You should've stayed to fight, you coward!
Give me new men, and I'll fix him for good.
Then do it! What are you waiting for?
Did you see who killed Romer?
Kahlen.
So he murdered a Danish officer in cold blood...
...and we have a witness.
The Germans told us what happened.
And where you were last night.
Did you collect money for the church?
They also said that you... sent Ann-May-Mouse away.
Where's Ann-Barbara?
There was a note.
Don't come again.
If you can prove that Kahlen has killed an officer...
We can.
Major Preisler saw it with his own eyes.
We want to help you, Schinkel.
de Schinkel.
No estate owner wants Kahlen to build his settlement.
But there is one thing that we all wonder about.
It's the distribution of revenues that you propose.
It is my land, my moor. It's only fair I get most of it.
It's not your land, Schinkel.
You know that very well.
de Schinkel.
And if things go well...
you can have a tenth like the rest of us.
You sit...
and insult me in my own home.
You can forget it.
Forget it!
Mr de Schinkel accepts your terms.
He just needs to sleep on it.
But it's agreed.
Damnation...!
He's killed an officer.
An officer!
In addition, he's managed to unite Jutland's most powerful landholders...
Men who normally hate each other like the plague...
...in a united front...
...against us!
I'm not taking the case for him, that's for sure.
We agreed that Kahlen would not be up to the task.
Maybe we should investigate what has happened.
His Majesty was impressed at how far Kahlen had come.
His Majesty doesn't know anything about who Kahlen is, you idiot.
He's drunk around the clock.
He doesn't care who's on the moor, so long as there's someone.
If we say yes to the landholders' proposal, we condemn Kahlen.
Without a trial, without hearing his side of the story.
You still haven't understood it.
When the king asks...
...nothing has changed.
The settlement's being built. All is according to plan.
We cannot condemn a man who never existed.
You are staying illegally on the land of Frederik de Schinkel!
You must leave the area immediately and report to Hald Manor.
You have until tonight to pack.
Preisler!
Get out of here!
The settlement is under the King's protection.
Not anymore. The land now belongs to Mr de Schinkel and his partner.
The deed is signed and sealed by the Royal Treasury.
In the name of God, enough is enough!
I must ask you to leave the camp.
Don't interfere, Eklund. Go home.
You have no authority whatsoever here, Preisler.
You're employed by a private estate owner.
What do you think the authorities will say when they hear that you are a murderer?
Anton... don't.
That you rode in with some criminals and murdered innocent people.
Shut up, Anton. Go home.
The Treasury may not believe in a bunch of German farmers...
...but I am a man of God and I guarantee you...
Stop it!
They've arrested Ludvig Kahlen.
de Schinkel has taken over Kings House.
Open the door! Let me out!
Don't go out to him, Miss.
It only makes it worse for him.
It's crazy that this is where we have ended up, Ludvig.
It's completely unnecessary.
Say...
...that it's my land...
that it's always been my land...
...and I'll let you live.
I promise.
It's the king's land.
Tell them that they can start boiling the water.
Lise...
Are you working here again?
The gentleman has asked for a a glass of liqueur. Will you arrange it?
What are you doing here?
Let it cool down a bit.
Lord, Miss Edel wishes to see you in your chamber.
Now she wants to see me in my chamber!
No, thank you. I'll stay here.
Miss said she wants to negotiate the terms of an engagement.
You marry me and I'll spare Kahlen's life. Is that it?
Yes.
That's my only condition.
You're deceitful.
One cannot trust a word that comes out of your mouth.
But if you show me here and now that you mean what you say...
...then I promise to let him out, and the court will decide his fate.
Show you?
Stop it...
You know what I mean.
Just there on the floor?
Or should we take the bed?
We can do whatever you want. We can do both.
I seem to have had a glass of wine too much.
Ann-Barbara?
You can't be in here.
Get out!
Guard!
You'll be hanged for that, you bitch!
No, no, don't...!
This is for Johannes.
- The lord of the manor is dead! - Ann-Barbara has killed him!
Sorry it took so long.
I had to explain to the Royal Treasury how everything was connected.
The Germans have gone, Ludvig.
Miss Edel has gone home to her family in Norway.
You can keep Kings House.
But heaven knows if they'll ever send for for new settlers.
Ann-Barbara?
We'll not see her again.
She's in Aalborg for life.
Solitary.
No chance of release.
Have you changed the water?
Then go in and change the water!
I need a strong worker in the house.
Someone who is good with animals...
...and has learned how to write numbers in a surveyor's book.
You don't know where I can find someone like that, do you?
I shouldn't have sent you away.
I promise to never let you down again.
I promise to always take care of you.
When is she coming back?
She's not coming back.
She's happy where she is now.
I think she lives on the beach in a little house by the water...
...as she has always said.
If Godman is in heaven and the Germans are gone...
...only you and I will be left, Pappy.
But the two of us are on our own. Eh?
41. 18.
16.
I don't think it'll rain.
We can let the goats out on the grass.
Hi. Do you need any windows fixed or have something replaced?
No, we don't. We don't need anything.
What about knives that need sharpening?
We need 5 new windows and have a box of knives to be sharpened...
And the barn must be sealed for winter and the well needs new stones.
- She's a handful, isn't she? - Stop!
And you the tribe?
Are you a gypsy?
Ann-May-Mouse?
Yes, further down.
Yes, move your fingers. Yes.
Ludvig von Kahlen...
We have the honour... to present this official decree...
That as agreed the Royal Treasury, you be granted the title of Baron
...with associated land-use rights and 20 years of tax exemption.
Your appanage will take effect when the settlement is completed.
Yes, it's 2,000 riksdalers annually.
- The settlement? - Yes.
Yes... We are sending out for 400 settlers this spring.
They'll be kept busy.
Can we congratulate you, von Kahlen?
This is a huge achievement.
I finally got them sent off.
I've never seen two grown men be so engrossed by a potato plant.
Schnapps!
How are the haemorrhoids doing?
I don't talk about them anymore.
People still don't understand the pain I have to endure.
You've received another rejection to have Ann-Barbara's sentence reduced.
Unfortunately, I have more bad news.
The female prisoners in Aalborg will be sent to the slave centre in Copenhagen.
Ann-Barbara too.
You know as well as I do what slavery means.
Those poor people don't live long.
I'm sorry that I had to tell you this.
Can I have the bottle for the return journey?
Things rarely turn out the way we imagined they would, Ludvig.
Thanks for everything, Pappy.
Ludvig Kahlen left the moor in 1763
His noble title was annulled