In the 15th century, the Hungarian Kingdom is the gateway to Western Europe
and the buffer between Sultan Murad's ambition
to expand the Ottoman Empire and Christian Europe,
Hence, of enormous geopolitical interest,
Despite frequent brutal incursions by raiding Ottoman forces,
no one yet realizes that the fate of all Europe hangs in the balance,
THE KINGDOM OF HUNGARY - WALLACHIA SERBIA - THE OTTOMAN EMPIRE
Janko!
Come here,
Show me how you hold that bow,
Not so close to your face, The string will hit you,
Keep your shoulders down,
Don't aim with your hand,,,
Nor with your eyes,
Up here,,,
Janko, I've told you before: don't play with that bow in the courtyard,
Just keep at it,
Come,
They're coming!
Grab your weapons!
Call the others, Let's go!
Everyone to the gates, Come on!
Move!
Come on! Quickly!
Listen to me,
You've got to hide,
Whatever happens, do what your mother says, Understood?
- I'm staying with you, - Janko!
- Open the gates! - Come!
Listen to me, Your job is to stay alive,
Bring my sword, then do as your mother says, Understood? Go!
It'll be alright, Everything will be alright,
Open the damn gates!
Let my people in!
Now go! Hide!
Open the gates!
- But my lord,,, - I said open the gates!
- They'll kill us all! - Out of my way!
Get in, Quick!
Let go of me!
- Janko, just keep quiet, - Let me go!
Janko!
My son!
Orzse!
Vajk!
Janko,,,
Why did you do that?
What?
I could have done it myself,
Sorry, I thought it was about to tear you to pieces,
You might as well keep it,
Can you help me back to the castle?
My name is Janos Hunyadi,
I know who you are,
Every girl knows your name,
You are my brother’s drinking buddy,,,
You're Miho's sister? Little Erzsebet Szilagyi?
What are you doing here?
I'm here with the Queen,
BELGRADE CASTLE BORDERLANDS OF SERBIA AND HUNGARY
Erzsebet!
You've come too?
I found her in the forest,
You went hunting?
On such an important day for my father?
I thought I would bring a gift in the King's honor,
But it's really for you, my love,
Hey, Janko!
That wolf is mine,
You killed it on Serbian land,
Come here!
But I gave it to your daughter,
Look at yourself!
Get cleaned up, The King of Hungary is coming, He's your king, not mine,
Is Sigismund here already?
No, only the Queen,
The King is late, as usual,
I suspect he is busy with his whores,
Father!
Forgive me, my girl,
Listen, Janko,,,
This evening is very important to me,
Upset Sigismund,,,
and you'll never set foot in my court again!
Behave yourself!
He'll be good,
Won't you?
Erzsebet!
She's like a puppy dog,
I'm always chasing after her,
Erzsebet Szilagyi is my bride,
That's too bad,
I keep telling him not to be hasty with such matters,
Where have you been?
Hunting,
When will you learn to act like a lady?
I'm not your wife, Miklos,
Not yet,
Your Majesty,
We're late,
Only as much as I wanted to be,
Stay by my side for now, but when the kids grow bored of the King, go with them,
Can't you leave me out of your dirty schemes for once?
Stay close to your sister Mara, I want to know everything about her,
and that peasant, Hunyadi,
Leave my sister out of this,
Just do as I ask,
Your Majesty,,,
Ah, Cillei, come here!
I was just asking our dear Brankovic about his youngest daughter's future,
I bet there are plenty of bees buzzing around such a pretty flower,
Have you made plans for her future yet, Brankovic?
Perhaps she could be one of the Queen's ladies-in-waiting?
That's a splendid idea, Your Majesty,
I choose my ladies-in-waiting,
You choose your whores,
I need Mara here with me, She helps me in everything,
I'm sorry,,,
but I cannot let her go to Hungary,
Come on,
You again?
You're just as arrogant as I thought,
But at least you can dance,
Won't Mara be jealous?
Certainly not as much as Ujlaki,
You deserve much better than him,
You're not wrong,
Or maybe he's just right for you,
Forgive me,,,
My Lord,
- What's that? - Nothing,,, It's nothing,
- Who's that man? - My father's Turkish interpreter,
- What are they talking about? - I don't know,,,
But with the Ottomans, it's never a good sign,
- What? - That’s wonderful news, Katalin!
Let's drink to it!
Where's the father? Where's our dear Count Cillei?
Cillei? Probably halfway up the King's ass,
Ulrich is a wonderful man, One day he'll rule the whole empire,
And he'll be a wonderful father,
I'm falling asleep here,
Would you rather be dancing?
Do you really think you can get anything you want?
- They'll hear us! - No, they won't,,,
I can't,,,
Why not? Because you're in love with a nobody,,,
Because someone like you can never marry someone like me?
You know how much I love you,,,
I will be someone, Mara, I swear,
One day your father will be happy to see me by your side,
You're a fool,
That's your doing, Before I came here, I was quite normal,
You were always a fool,,,
But tradition doesn't forbid ladies from marrying fools,
In fact, it happens quite often,
Soldiers! Assemble!
What's going on?
Assemble!
- Where's Brankovic? - Mobilizing soldiers to join us,
- How could this happen? - No idea, sir,
If it's true,,, If Galamboc Castle has been captured by the Ottomans,
Brankovic will have to answer to me,
It was just a brainless captain, who opened the gates for a handful of gold,
And a Turkish regiment just happened to be hanging around?
Do you think I'm stupid? How many soldiers do we have?
A few hundred, Your Grace,
Enough to take back the castle?
It's like an eagle's nest, Your Majesty!
We'll need more soldiers, And siege engines,
We'll cross the river in Lady Rozgonyi's boat
and take back the castle in a single attack,
This time tomorrow, you'll have forgotten all about it,
Find Brankovic! This isn't what we agreed on!
Send a courier to Lady Rozgonyi,
Her troops will cross the Danube and land at the castle of Galamboc,
One single attack! Understood?
Your Majesty, we should send out scouts first,
Who do you think you are?
I'd be obliged if you'd keep your nose out of what doesn't concern you,
- What do you want here, anyway? - And who do you think you are?
- I'm Ulrich Cillei, Count of Hungary, - Then you're no soldier, I am,
And something's not right here, Your Majesty, we must send out scouts,
This is a council of war, It's none of your business,
- That's enough, son! - Take me with you,
I thought you served Brankovic?
I'm a Hungarian nobleman, I'm coming with you,
Alright,
Now go and find your comrades,
- Can we continue? - Sire,,, the boy's right,
- Unbelievable! - We leave at dawn,
I hope you're right, Cillei,
Janko!
I've waited all my life for this,
For what? The battle or that hug?
- Well,,, - Don't you dare answer that!
Look after yourself,
I'll be back to take you away, Forever,
Until then, take this,
Give it to me when you return,
And let it keep you safe,
GALAMBOC CASTLE BORDERLANDS OF SERBIA AND HUNGARY
Lady Rozgonyi's fleet is ready, Sire,
- Take these - quickly, - Lady Cicelle Rozgonyi,,,
I am Erzsebet Szilagyi, We haven't yet met,
I don't have time for formalities, What do you want?
I want to go with you,
I don’t know what you have in mind,,, Battles are not for noblewomen,
Where's the list?
Get them on board, too, Move it!
- I can be just as useful as a man, - I have no time for this,
But you are a woman too, A noblewoman at that,
Please, Just give me a chance!
Follow me like a shadow,,, If you get killed, it's on you,
Stay there, Sister,
Stay there!
She's your fiancée, Do something!
- I've raised three hundred men! - What for?
To help the Hungarians, We must leave at once!
We're not going anywhere,
You wanted to see me, Father?
Give us a moment alone,
- But Father! - Stefan, please,,,
Mara,,,
Sit,
My girl,,, Our homeland and our people are in great danger,
Sometimes fate presents us with impossible situations,,,
All I want for you is what every father wants for his daughter,
I want you to be happy,
I'm different from you,
Wealth means nothing to me,
The castles, the servants, the land, the clothes, the feasts,,,
I'd happily give up my whole inheritance if,,,
If what?
If you let me marry Hunyadi,
You're more naive than I thought,
What?
Forget Hunyadi,
Listen to me, my girl,,,
The Ottomans will crush the Hungarians,
It may take five years or fifty years, but they'll do it,
Meanwhile, caught between two warring powers,
Serbia will die,
It will disappear, Disappear from the face of the earth,
If we want to save our people,
we must pay a great price,,, a terrible price,
Galamboc Castle?
Is that the price?
Betraying our friends?
You've sold the castle to the Sultan?
What are you saying?
All I did was let Murad's troops pass through Serbia,
And if it saves my people, I’d do it again!
Why should we all die to save the Hungarians?
But that's not why I called you here, There's something even worse,
What is it?
Tell me,
Mara,,,
Do you want to serve your people?
I do, Always,
Even at the cost of your own happiness?
Of course,
Would you sacrifice your life for them?
You know I would,
I'm proud of you, my girl,
Just tell me what to do and I'll do it,
Mara,,,
You must marry the Sultan,
What?
We have no other choice,
Is this what you want?
No, my dear,
I would never let you go,,, never,,,
But I must,
The Turks won't leave without you,
Get ready!
We are fighting in distinguished company,
You know what it means if the King himself is here,
An easy victory,
Sigismund always plays it safe,
GALAMBOC
Murad's troops!
What are they doing here?
Who cares? They're here,
Retreat!
Ujlaki, where are you running?
The King!
Go after him!
Protect the King!
Your Majesty!
The King's in the water!
Oars in the water!
Pull him out!
Your Majesty! We must get to the boat,
- Pull him out! - To the left!
Oars up! Keep left!
The Sultan's full title is:
Allah's Earthly Regent,
Lord of all the Lords of the World,
King of Kings, Lord of Life and Death,
King of the Faithful and the Infidels,
Emperor of East and West,
the Refuge of all the Unfortunates of the World,
the Voice of the Almighty Silence that spreads over the Earth,,,
The Shadow of God,
The Shadow of God?
But we can just call him: Glorious Sultan Murad,
Now we bow down and wait for him,
Think you can do it?
You heard him,
Bow down,
Why are we bowing to him?
While he is butchering our friends,
If you don't bow down, it won't just be your friends,
You'll be butchered, too, All of you,
Grgur, Stefan, Do as he says,
Down!
What are you waiting for?
Glorious Sultan, we bow before you in trust and friendship,
You are beautiful,
Bright-eyed Sultan, I let your army pass through Serbia,
Be merciful to us,
We shall annihilate the Hungarians,
But you said their king would be unprotected,
And Sigismund is not yet in our hands,
This is not what we agreed on,
Give me one good reason why I shouldn't destroy your country,
I have a reason!
How dare you?
Get back!
Don't be a fool, Mara!
Do as you're told,
My father says that I am to be your wife,
Mara has had the best upbringing,
She reads and writes in Latin and Turkish,
And naturally, she is untouched,
She will make a perfect concubine,
I'll go with you,
But only if you promise to leave my people in peace,
Speak only when the Sultan addresses you!
Forgive my daughter's rudeness, Glorious Sultan,
She is young and naive,
I promise,
I will not harm your people,
Good girl,
Now get ready, and they'll take you to Edirne,
The Sultan will follow you soon,
There's no need to pack anything,
you'll have everything you need there,
You'll have a good life,
I hope it's a girl,
What?
My sister's child, Your child,
I hope it's a girl,
And that one day you'll lose her just like this,
- You shouldn't have been there, - I didn't get the chance to fight anyway,
A woman has no place on a battlefield,
At least she wasn’t a coward,
- Don't you talk to me like that,,, - Boys,,,
You fish the King out of the river and you're a hero?
- Miklos, Stop,,, - I'm not done with you!
If you like those hands, you’ll keep them off my sister,
Janos!
- The King wants to see you, - Me?
It's an extraordinary honor,
You sent for me, Your Majesty,
Come in, Let's skip the formalities,
Thank you,
Do you know why I sent for you?
Your father was one of my best soldiers,
That's why I gave him this ring,
And here we are again,
The great Vajk once saved my life, and now his son has done the same,
What do you want as your reward?
We shouldn't have run from the Turks,
Murad must be destroyed,
I wanted to fight, too, I'm as hot-headed as you are,
But I could not lead my men to certain death,
- Death is better than dishonor, - I like your enthusiasm,
It's stupid, but I like it,
You're coming with me to Buda,
You can join my bodyguards,
No,
No?
I'm flattered, Your Majesty, But I have no business in Buda,
The Turks are here, So this is where I need to be,
As you wish,
But there is something I want to ask for,
Your,,,
Your blessing to marry Mara Brankovic,
I know I don't have the right title or rank,
But if you agreed, not even her father could say no,
You are a bit late for that,
Mara is already on her way to Edirne,
Brankovic has betrayed us, my boy,
He's made a pact with the Sultan, That’s the only possible explanation,
How else could Murad's army cross Serbia without us even noticing?
Stay where you are!
I need to speak to Mara Brankovic,
Stop! Let me talk to him,
What is all this?
What are you doing here?
I'm taking you home,
You can’t,
You worry about yourself, Janko,
Whatever we had,,,
it's over,
But why?
Just accept it: this is our fate,
Not just mine, yours too,
No, I won’t,
I could have never been your wife,
Not in this world,
What are you talking about?
My father has sold me to the Sultan,
This is the price of peace,
There can be no peace,
Until I get you back, there can only be war,
We'll never see each other again, Janko,
Why are you saying that?
If you really love me, get back on your horse
and don't stop riding until you reach Hunyad Castle!
Miklos,,,
I can't marry you,
What?
I've known it for a long time,
Our marriage will be good for everyone,
Your family can only gain from it,
Because you own half the country?
You can't do this to me, You can't shame me in front of everybody,
I don't want to,
They all think I'm the luckiest girl in the world,
You break the engagement,
Tell them I'm not good enough for you,
I've given you plenty of reasons,
But why?
You love someone else, don't you?
No,,,
But I've never really loved you,,,
and I know you've never loved me,
If we go on like this, we'll start to hate each other,
And I wouldn't wish that on either of us,
EDIRNE THE OTTOMAN EMPIRE
Welcome to Heaven on Earth, my dear!
You speak Hungarian?
Murad likes girls like us,
To be the Sultan's mistress is a great honor and a sensual delight,
Let me tell you a secret,
The secret of concubines,
If you fight it,,,
it will hurt,
But if you pretend to enjoy it,,,
you'll be treated like royalty,
BUDA CASTLE THE KINGDOM OF HUNGARY
Your Majesty,,,
You sent for me,
Sit down,
Wine?
I'd rather keep a clear head, Your Majesty,
Very wise,
But you can pour some for me,
Well,,,
Here's to you,,,
and your new brother-in-law,
The Sultan,
I'm still getting used to the new situation myself,
I bet you are,
You must have considered how this would affect me,
Naturally,
Out with it then!
I like to give a man a fair hearing
while he's still got his head on his shoulders,
First, Your Majesty,
I do hope you're not trying to threaten one of your biggest supporters,
- You betrayed me, Cillei, - Not one bit, Your Majesty,
I actually helped you, in my own way,
Watch what you say,,,
If I may sum up what happened at Galamboc Castle in one word,
it is "victory",
Victory?
- You call that a victory? - Because it is, Your Grace,
We may have lost a castle, but we have taken Edirne,
Is it so?
I was just a bootlicker, but now I'm a truly valuable ally,
I think you'd better explain yourself,
Like you said, the Sultan is now my brother-in-law,
My sister-in-law is now his concubine,
And Mara is a very smart girl,
Right now, she's angry, but she'll calm down,
She'll write to her sister,,, about everything,
And, as your know, her sister is my wife,
Mara will tell Katalin everything she sees and hears,
We'll finally have eyes and ears in the Sultan's inner circle,
We'll know every move Murad makes,
Now do you see why I'm your new best friend?
You're not getting off that easily,,,
Of course not, Your Majesty,
I’ll need some money for my trip to Italy,
I'd be delighted to help you,
HUNYAD CASTLE THE KINGDOM OF HUNGARY
My Lord!
Welcome back, my lord!
Auntie Magda,
I am here to do your will, Glorious Sultan,
Are you afraid?
No,