The film adaptation of the novel of the same name by Peter Jilemnický is a drama about the life of poor Kysuce miners, which takes place in the thirties during the economic crisis. During the peak wave of emigration, the dream of a better life drives thousands of people to America for work. Others, in order to support their families, leave for the surrounding towns. Produced by the Bratislava Art Film Studio, studios and laboratories Bratislava - Koliba.

"At the turn of the 10th and 11th centuries Boleslav's kingdom fell apart in the fratricidal war between the Premyslovci and the other clans the main profiteer of this being the German emperor. At that time it seemed as if the Czech state and the lineage of its princes was awaiting its end..." It is with these words that the tale of this film begins, whose narrative is based upon the the play by Frantisek Hrubín of the same name.

Mikolás and his brother Adam end up with a young German hostage of noble blood during a robbery. While their clan prepares for the wrath of the German king, Mikolás is sent to pressure his neighbor Lazar into a defense pact. Persuasion fails and he abducts Lazar's daughter Marketa on the eve of her initiation as a nun in an act of vengeance.