Set in 1573, in the wooded hills of Hrvatsko Zagorje, Petar and his father venture into the forest under the shadow of Baron Tahy Tahy’s domain, hoping to bring food to their family. When Tahy’s men ambush them, Petar’s father is forced to strip and is hunted down and killed by Tahy’s dogs. Petar returns to a village where Tahy robs the peasants of food and even takes virgin girls to his castle. Rumors swirl about the Oathed Brotherhood, a group of peasant leaders determined to rise against the nobility.
A traveling comedian troupe arrives in the village, with the bold and sparkling presence of Regica. They perform to mock the local nobility and church, but when Tahy’s men close in, the villagers flee. Petar, hoping to use the troupe to locate the growing rebellion, follows them and encounters the fierce warrior Ilija Gregorić who fights Imperial troops single-handedly. Impressed by his courage, Petar becomes Gregorić’s squire, and the veteran leader tells him to seek out the blacksmith to learn his fate. blacksmith
The blacksmith helps them witness Gregorić’s daring escape, and the two set off together. Petar’s resolve hardens into a vow of revenge for his father. He joins the circle of rebellion when they meet the formidable leaders, including Matija Gubec and the trader Mikula. The group swears to strike soon, planning to move in from winter’s harsh grip, when peasants are most ready to rise. Gubec makes their overarching aim clear: “We want all men to be equal. The same as when they were born.” The oath is sealed as the leaders pledge to see this rebellion through.
When winter arrives, the peasants marshal their forces, and Petar returns home to discover his mother and sisters among the rebel ranks. With only a dagger, he joins the assault on Tahy’s castle. Tahy underestimates the mob, and his servants fall away as the peasants press forward. After brutal fighting, the walls are breached and the nobles are unmasked; a peasant girl takes Tahy’s son’s life, the castle’s stores are looted, and the rebels enjoy the wealth that comes with victory. They broadcast a proclamation that bans the nobility and the influence of the Roman Catholic Church, declaring independence.
In the rebel camp, Mikula faces judgment for theft; Gubec orders him hung, insisting that even founding supporters must be held to account. Gubec rises to remind his followers why they rose: to overturn the old order and ensure that their voices endure through the ages. The revelation that the visiting artist speaks Croatian, challenging foreign pretense, deepens the sense that truth and courage come from one’s own land. Petar meets peasants who have been captured and mutilated by the noble army—their warnings only steel his resolve to stay the course.
The rebellion gathers at Stubičko polje as Imperial forces approach. The battle unfolds with brutal courage and heavy losses on both sides. The comedian troupe is cut down in the chaos, mercenaries swarm the camp, and though the peasants stagger under the onslaught, they hold a stubborn line until reinforcements turn the tide. Petar is wounded, losing an eye, and the fighting grows fiercely costly for all involved.
In the aftermath, imperial and religious authorities erase the rebellion from memory. Matija Gubec is condemned and executed in a ritual of humiliation, bound to a mock throne and subjected to a cruel crown of heated metal before the throne is set aflame. Petar returns to his land, where the blacksmith’s workshop has been burned down, and he begins a new life with Regica. He and Regica start anew as a jester and performer, sharing a grim but hopeful refrain as they walk among the executed peasants, and he intones that the fight is far from over: “If they think this fight is done, they’re awfully mistaken. When we strike for a second time, not even their roots will stay on this land.”
Through triumphs and brutal losses, the film preserves the memory of a people who chose to challenge old powers, the costs of rebellion, and the enduring human hunger for dignity and equality. The final image—two unlikely survivors singing together beside the hanging victims—echoes a vow that history can bend, but not erase the quest for justice.
