The film was shot in 1989 based on the novel of the same name by Vladislav Vančura. At that time, the new owners of the aristocratic settlements became wealthy, who, although they had money, did not have the refinement of the old chateau lords. One day, the alleged Russian prince Alexei Megalrogov appears at the post-war regent Stoklasy at Kratochvíle Castle. With gallant behavior he enchants the whole society and brings to the ground-floor reality the romance of the old days, which, however, has its days already counted.