Hrabina Cosel (The Countess Cosel) is a 1968

Polish Polish may refer to: * Anything from or related to Poland, a country in Europe * Polish language * Polish people, people from Poland or of Polish descent * Polish chicken * Polish brothers (Mark Polish and Michael Polish, born 1970), American twin ...

film directed by Jerzy Antczak. The film is based on

Józef Ignacy Kraszewski Józef Ignacy Kraszewski (28 July 1812 – 19 March 1887) was a Polish novelist, journalist, historian, publisher, painter, and musician. Born in Warsaw into a noble family, he spent much of his youth with his maternal grandparents in Romanów ...

’s novel ''Hrabina Cosel'', a historical romance set in the court of

Augustus the Strong Augustus II the Strong (12 May 1670 – 1 February 1733), was Elector of Saxony from 1694 as well as King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania from 1697 to 1706 and from 1709 until his death in 1733. He belonged to the Albertine branch of the ...

, the first of the two Saxon kings of

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...

, at the turn of the 17th to 18th century.http://miskinhill.com.au/journals/asees/19:1-2/noble-faces-beautiful-souls.pdf

Plot

''The Countess Cosel'' is based on the true story of the beautiful

Anna Constantia von Brockdorff Anna Constantia von Brockdorff (17 October 1680 – 31 March 1765), later the Countess of Cosel, was a German lady-in-waiting and noblewoman, and mistress of Augustus the Strong, King of Poland and Elector of Saxony, in 1706–1713. Eventua ...

, a German noblewoman who became mistress of

, King of Poland and

Elector of Saxony The Electorate of Saxony, also known as Electoral Saxony ( or ), was a territory of the Holy Roman Empire from 1356 to 1806 initially centred on Wittenberg that came to include areas around the cities of Dresden, Leipzig and Chemnitz. It was a ...

in 1704. Against the backdrop of life at Augustus’ court the movie follows the arrival at

Dresden Dresden (; ; Upper Saxon German, Upper Saxon: ''Dräsdn''; , ) is the capital city of the States of Germany, German state of Saxony and its second most populous city after Leipzig. It is the List of cities in Germany by population, 12th most p ...

of 24-year-old Anna Constantia von Brockdorff, who is an inordinately beautiful and scrupulously devout young married woman; her romance with the king and her ‘ten year reign’ as his mistress – a role she consents to in the belief that she has won the king's love and commitment; and finally, her heartbreak, disillusion and struggle against him. The conflict between Anna and the king arises from the fact that Anna takes seriously not only the relationship, but the written promise of marriage which she manages to secure from him during their courtship. Neither the relationship nor the contract is held in much esteem by Augustus, who replaces her, as he has always done, with another mistress, as soon as she loses for him the charm of novelty. Her valiant refusal to return the marriage promissory note upon request enrages him and delivers her to her miserable fate. In the opinion of the court, Cosel came to be considered increasingly dangerous when it became known that king Augustus had given her a secret written promise of marriage. Ultimately, she fell from grace with the king when she showed her jealousy after her spies told her about the king's affair with Countess Maria Magalena von

Dönhoff The House of Dönhoff (Polish: Denhoff, sometimes also Doenhoff) was an old and influential German noble family, which later also became part of the Polish nobility. History It was first mentioned in 1282, in the County of Mark in Westphalia. ...

Warsaw Warsaw, officially the Capital City of Warsaw, is the capital and List of cities and towns in Poland, largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the Vistula, River Vistula in east-central Poland. Its population is officially estimated at ...

. Distraught and feeling desperate to win back king's affection, Cosel departed Dresden to meet the king in Warsaw only to be turned back at the city gates. Augustus, having no more feelings for his former mistress, gave orders to lock her up in the

Stolpen Stolpen (, ) is a town in the district of Sächsische Schweiz-Osterzgebirge, in Saxony, Germany. It is a historical town, that grew at the foot of the ''Schloßberg'' with the castle ''Burg Stolpen''. Burg Stolpen Burg Stolpen is a castle bui ...

fortress. Cosel's faith and courage, which replaced her initial despair and anger culminated in her decision to remain in her jail, even after Augustus’ death, thirty-two years before her own, opened the way for her to regain her freedom. As a result, Cosel was imprisoned for forty-nine years, before she died in 1765, being eighty-five years of age. To the end of her life she preserved traces of her great beauty, by which she became so famous.

Cast

* Jadwiga Barańska –

, countess Cosel * Mariusz Dmochowski –

Augustus II the Strong Augustus II the Strong (12 May 1670 – 1 February 1733), was Elector of Saxony from 1694 as well as King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania from 1697 to 1706 and from 1709 until his death in 1733. He belonged to the Albertine branch of the H ...

* Stanisław Jasiukiewicz – Raimund Zaklika, Polish soldier in love with Cosel and her faithful servant *

Daniel Olbrychski Daniel Marcel Olbrychski (; born 27 February 1945) is a Polish people, Polish film actor, film and theatre actor who is widely considered one of the greatest Polish actors of his generation. He appeared in 180 films and TV productions and is bes ...

– King

Charles XII of Sweden Charles XII, sometimes Carl XII () or Carolus Rex (17 June 1682 – 30 November 1718 Old Style and New Style dates, O.S.), was King of Sweden from 1697 to 1718. He belonged to the House of Palatinate-Zweibrücken, a branch line of the House of ...

* Ignacy Gogolewski – baron Frederic Kyan * Stanisław Milski – count

Egon von Fürstenberg Egon is a Danish variant of the male given name Egino. It is most commonly found in Central Europe, Central and Northern Europe, Northern Europe. Egon may refer to: People * Egon VIII of Fürstenberg-Heiligenberg (1588–1635), Imperial Count of ...

* Henryk Borowski – count Adolf von Hoym, Cosel's husband *

Władysław Hańcza Władysław Hańcza (18 May 1905 – 19 November 1977) was a Polish actor and theatre director. Education and debut In 1924, he graduated high school in his hometown of Łódź. Afterwards he studied philosophy and Polish philology at the Adam Mi ...

– Saxon general Schulenburg *

Leon Niemczyk Leon Stanisław Niemczyk (15 December 1923 – 29 November 2006) was a Polish actor. Niemczyk developed into a leading box-office star throughout the 1960s, known for serious dramas, including historical dramas and war films. He appeared in over ...

– French count de Lecherenne * Krystyna Chmielewska – Marianna

, new mistress of the king Augustus * Mieczysław Kałenik – La Haye, lieutenant of the life guards * Maria Homerska – Christiane Eberhardine, king's wife * Władysław Dewoyno – Holder, a Saxon nobleman *

Bronisław Pawlik Bronisław Pawlik (8 January 1926 – 6 May 2002) was a Polish actor. He starred in the TV series ''Stawka większa niż życie'' and 1978 comedy film ''What Will You Do When You Catch Me?''. At the 1st Moscow International Film Festival (1959) he ...

– Johann Böttger, king's alchemist

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Hrabina Cosel, Countess Cosel 1968 films Polish historical romance films 1960s Polish-language films Polish epic films 1960s historical romance films 1968 romantic drama films Films based on Polish novels Films set in the 18th century Films set in Poland Films set in Dresden Films set in Germany Films set in Warsaw Films directed by Jerzy Antczak Cultural depictions of Charles XII of Sweden Polish romantic drama films Józef Ignacy Kraszewski