The Eve of the First World War. In his one-man newspaper "Het Vrije Meerse" printer-publisher-journalist Constant Reynaert criticizes the policy of Ridder de Bellicourt, mayor of Houtegem. The mayor rules as a feudal ruler, supported by his vassals. The romance of Ridder de Bellicourt and his noble neighbor Marie-Ange van Hoeylandt is disrupted by the war. The frivolous Marie-Ange is too busy with the billeted German officers. De Bellicourt seeks revenge and tries to eliminate the troublesome Constant Reynaert.