Denmark, 1755. Captain Ludvig Kahlen sets out to conquer a Danish heath reputed to be uncultivable, with an impossible goal: to establish a colony in the name of the king, in exchange for a royal title. A single-minded ambition that the ruthless lord of the region will relentlessly seek to put down. Kahlen's fate hangs in the balance: will his endevours bring him wealth and honour, or cost him his life...?

Sanna is the 21-year-old daughter of a rich landowner in southern Sweden. Her father, Bengt, makes his fortune by leasing his vast expanse of inherited land to hardworking family farmers, many of whom struggle to make ends meet. Stern and unyielding, Bengt holds influence over those less fortunate, while Sanna struggles with the idea of becoming his heir apparent. When she begins a relationship with Marcus, the penniless son of a nearby farmer, her father issues an ultimatum — leave Marcus or lose her inheritance.