This novel by Ebers is about duty, politics, courage, loyalty, honor and, of course, love. About perseverance in the face of adversity, about the wife’s support of her husband in difficult times, about love for her husband, for children, for God, for the country. This is a novel about strong people who did not break not only in the face of their own death, but also in the face of the death of loved ones. That faith in the correctness of the chosen path is stronger than hunger and stronger than the plague. That true love is always self-denial. About the fact that the well-being of many people is more important than one’s own well-being. The historical background of the novel is the struggle of the Netherlands against Spanish rule in 1574 - 1575