Mein Mädchen ist ein Postillion (1958)

The year is 1910. When Prince Georg, nephew of the Grand Duke of Baden-Werrach, realizes that an actress he has supported and loved has only been using him, he retreats with his friend, the poet Dr. Richard Hebele, to his castle in the Black Forest. On the way to Kaltenau, not far from the castle, he meets Barbara, the local postal carrier, who drives the Black Forest mail coach. The coach is about to be discontinued and, in keeping with progress, is to be replaced by a bus. Georg, who has introduced himself to Barbara as the prince’s gamekeeper, promises to help her petition the Grand Duke, since he knows the prince well. He sends a letter to the Grand Duke; in thanks, Barbara and the other postal carriers come to the castle to serenade him, and Georg, wishing to keep his identity secret, sends Richard out in his place as the prince. At a festival for the patron saint of postal workers, Georg and Barbara dance together, but Richard also insists on appearing as “Prince Georg.” A photographer secretly takes a picture of him with the dancing twins Lilli and Cilli, whose father, Kuno, is a schnapps distiller; Richard promptly makes him a purveyor to the court. When the picture is due to appear in the newspaper, the deception is exposed and Richard is arrested. Meanwhile, Georg has been summoned to his uncle, who has fallen ill. He learns that the petition concerning the mail coach has been rejected by the minister responsible, who has been running the Grand Duke’s affairs since his illness. Georg, in turn, is to officiate at the inauguration of the new mail bus the following day on his uncle’s behalf. At the ceremony, Barbara promptly hands Georg the Grand Ducal coat of arms that had until then been displayed on the mail coach. She then runs off, disappointed, and rides back to Kaltenau in the mail coach. Georg hurries after her, catches up with her, and takes her to his castle. He wants to marry her and proposes. But when they arrive at the castle, the flags are being lowered to half-mast: the Grand Duke has suddenly died and, in his will, named Georg as his successor. Georg is distraught, because he can no longer marry Barbara, but she releases him from their commitment. Stiffly, he receives the people’s homage from the castle balcony, while Barbara joins the jubilant crowd. A little later, Georg, now Grand Duke, appears at the old post house with Richard, his new Grand Ducal secretary. By Grand Ducal decree, Barbara is allowed to operate the mail coach again, as it is essential to preserving the region’s traditions. Barbara and Georg spend the afternoon together and eventually make the first journey in the newly restored old mail coach.