Trenck (1932)

Prussia during the Silesian Wars in the 1740s. The Prussian Guards lieutenant Friedrich Freiherr von der Trenck, nephew of Franz von der Trenck, who serves Austria and is also known as “Trenck the Pandur,” has attracted the attention of Frederick II (later known as Frederick the Great). The Prussian king intends to appoint him as his adjutant. When Trenck arrives at the court in Potsdam, he meets Princess Amalie, the king’s youngest sister, on the palace staircase. They quickly fall in love. On the eve of the war, a magnificent ball is held, and Trenck takes charge of the ball watch. Amalie seizes the opportunity and arranges a rendezvous with the Guards lieutenant she loves. Then Trenck must go to the front. At the Battle of Soor (1745), the two Trencks unexpectedly come face to face. Trenck the Pandur and his men have utterly devastated the camp of the Prussian units. Friedrich von der Trenck and Lieutenant von Rochow then decide, against orders, to confront the other Trenck, but they fall into Austrian hands. Rochow is killed, and the Prussian Trenck is disarmed. He vehemently rejects the offer to defect and eventually returns to his unit with his dead comrade. Trenck’s unauthorized action has serious consequences: he is sentenced to imprisonment in the fortress at Glatz for insubordination. After the Peace of Dresden, he feels forgotten by his own people and escapes from prison. He is now also wanted for desertion. At precisely this time, Princess Amalie, who has meanwhile become abbess of Quedlinburg Abbey, succeeds in persuading her brother to pardon Friedrich von der Trenck. A restless life now begins for Trenck, constantly fleeing from King Frederick’s pursuers. At first he feels safe in Russia; later he makes his way to Danzig, which at the time is not under Prussian rule. Nevertheless, he is handed over to Prussian soldiers, who, on the king’s orders, take him to the fortress of Magdeburg. In a dark dungeon, the vengeful monarch keeps him chained like an animal for years. By royal command, none of the guards is allowed to exchange a word with him. Princess Amalie tries to free him, but the escape attempt fails because the prisoner is already severely weakened. Only after the lost Battle of Kunersdorf in 1759 does Frederick remember him and, after seventeen years of imprisonment, order Trenck’s release, while banishing his former favorite from Prussia forever. After Frederick’s death in 1786, his successor, Frederick William II, lifts this ban. At Monbijou Palace, the two visibly aged lovers, Trenck and Amalie, reunite after around thirty years. Trenck gives his former beloved his memoirs, which, despite all his bitter experiences and endured torments, are devoted entirely to the spirit of Frederick II.