Sisi

Sisi, the daughter of the Bavarian Duke Max, grows up carefree and close to nature with her siblings at Lake Starnberg. When the young Austrian Emperor Franz Joseph is to marry her older sister Helene, Sisi reluctantly goes along to Bad Ischl for the engagement. But a fateful encounter between Sisi and Franz suddenly changes the course of events.

Sisi has fallen in love with Franz. Without hesitation, she follows him to Vienna as his future wife. But the strict court ceremonial quickly gets to the freedom-loving Bavarian princess. Out of love for Franz, she is nevertheless prepared to put up with all the hardships and duties. She knows that she must first earn the respect of the court. Sisi finds a friend and confidante in Fanny, whom she smuggles into the palace as a maid under a false name.

The young couple's wedding night does not go as planned and Sisi needs Fanny's advice more than ever. But Countess Esterhazy exposes Fanny as an impostor and banishes her from court. It is only during their honeymoon in Laxenburg that Sisi and Franz slowly find their way to each other. At her first, official reception as empress, Sisi surprises everyone with her excellent knowledge of the Hungarian language and the kindness with which she treats the Hungarian nobility.

Sisi is pregnant. The young imperial couple do not have much time to enjoy their happiness together. The conflicts in Hungary come to a head, and the rest of Europe is also seething. Countess Esterhazy hopes that Sisi can persuade the Emperor to negotiate with the Hungarian nobility. She arranges a secret meeting between Sisi and Count Andrassy. But before she can speak to Franz, an assassination attempt is made on him during the christening of their daughter Sophie.

Franz barely survived the assassination attempt in the church. But when there are uprisings against the Habsburgs in Italy, he goes to war. To help the soldiers as well, Sisi helps out in a military hospital in Laxenburg and cares for the wounded. The mood in Hungary is still heated. Sisi succeeds in persuading Franz to meet Count Andrassy during a reception in Budapest and negotiate a peace treaty. At the height of the festivities, another dangerous incident occurs.

The new assassination attempt on Franz was prevented, but the young imperial couple is struck by a terrible blow of fate in Budapest. The little princess Sophie dies. Sisi falls into deep, immeasurable grief and Franz distances himself from her more and more. In Europe the signs continue to point to war, Napoleon III claims parts of the Habsburg lands in Italy for himself. Sisi refuses to give up and fights - for herself, her people and her love for Franz!

In order to prevent a new war in Europe, Sisi and Franz must travel to France and ask Napoleon III for help. But it is not only their old enemy that worries them, but also an unexpected reunion.

On Count Andrassy's estate, Sisi is reminded of the carefree freedom of her childhood. As the courtly constraints fall away from her, the Hungarian's sensitive nature casts a greater spell over the empress.

When Sisi ends up in captivity with Count Andrassy, she finally has to ask herself how long she can hold out... Only Countess Esterhazy can now save the Empress.

Sisi and Count Andrassy travel together to Vienna to convince Franz of the need for a Hungarian parliament. But the special closeness between Sisi and Andrassy does not go unnoticed by Franz.

Franz breaks with Count Andrassy and, at the last minute, risks the support of the Hungarians in the impending war. While Sisi has to prove herself as a ruler alone in Vienna, her heart is with Franz and Andrassy on the battlefield.

The war has left deep wounds. Franz does not let Sisi get close to him and sends her back to Hungary. She does not yet suspect that this could be a farewell forever, but deeply hurt Sisi decides to go.

The proclamation of the republic and the fall of Napoleon III also lead to unrest in Vienna. Franz therefore decides to start his son Rudolf's military training earlier. At the same time, he orders Grünne to mingle incognito with the protesting workers in order to find out who their leader is. Sisi is unable to protect her sensitive son from the army and decides to free him on her own.

Sisi packs her things and leaves Franz an ultimatum. She will only return to court with Rudolf if Franz leaves the upbringing to her. Despite Franz's guards, who are hot on the heels of Sisi and Rudolf, they manage to escape. They are helped by the photographer Alma, who takes mother and son with her to the south of France. However, their arrival on a small, idyllic island does not go unnoticed.

Mother and son finally regain their zest for life on the island, while Sisi develops a trusting relationship with Alma. Franz fights against an alliance between the German Empire and Russia, which he can only prevent with the help of his mother. But then he finds out from a spy where Sisi and Rudolf are staying.

Franz visits Sisi and Rudolf in France. The family is finally reunited. Emperor and Empress spend a passionate night together, but the very next day Franz secretly takes Rudolf back to Vienna with him. Sisi and Franz try to forget each other in the arms of strangers. Franz's harsh treatment of the rebellious workers makes Grünne doubt his loyalty to the crown.

When Sisi learns that Franz has taken Rudolf out of the army, she returns to court. Despite their relationship problems, Sisi and Franz receive the Russian Tsar together for the alliance negotiations. Meanwhile, one of the unhappy workers makes his way to the Hofburg to carry out an assassination attempt on the imperial family.

Sisi learns that her son has been kidnapped by a laborer who demands the emperor's life in return for the crown prince's release. Closely followed by Franz, Sisi rides off to rescue Rudolf. While Archduchess Sophie and Countess Esterhazy take care of the German Chancellor Bismarck, Sisi and Franz find themselves in a seemingly hopeless situation.

Sisi has a serious riding accident on Corfu. To avoid jeopardizing her recovery, Franz hides from her that her father is dying. When she learns of Max's death, she travels to Possenhofen. There she discovers that her father has lost the family seat to jockey Georg Basselet of La Rosée in a horse race. Sisi asks for revenge, but the experienced rider will only agree if the Empress climbs into the saddle herself.

Although Franz has asked her never to ride again, Sisi begins to train secretly for the race against Georg. When the stable master Linda disappears, Sisi finds out that she is Max's illegitimate daughter and thus her half-sister. Meanwhile, Louis is offered the position of Minister of Justice. However, to do so he would have to give up his marriage to the opera singer Henriette. Meanwhile, Sisi's sister Sophie Charlotte is trying to win King Ludwig's heart.

Sisi has managed to persuade Linda to train with the temperamental Avalon and is finally making progress. While this also brings her closer to Georg, Henriette breaks off her inappropriate engagement with Louis so as not to endanger his position at court and as future Minister of Justice. Meanwhile, Sophie Charlotte is supposed to choose a marriage candidate at a festival in Possenhofen. King Ludwig suddenly appears and kisses her in front of everyone. While Sisi is secretly dancing with her betting opponent Georg, Linda's mother Adele, Max's former lover, is found dead.

The police have arrested Linda as the main suspect in the murder of her own mother. While Sisi tries everything to prove her innocence and asks an old acquaintance for help, Ludovika convinces Georg to call off the big race. Although Louis and Henriette have broken off their engagement, they cannot keep their distance from each other. And Sophie Charlotte is suffering from severe heartbreak because Ludwig has not contacted her since the night of the celebration in Possenhofen.

After an emotional night, Sisi is able to convince her rival Georg to keep the agreement to hold the race for Possenhofen Castle. Ludovika fears that Sisi will discover her long-kept secret and asks her sister Archduchess Sophie for help. Louis and Henriette decide to continue their relationship as a secret affair in order to secure their careers. Meanwhile, Sophie Charlotte breaks free from Ludwig. When Franz finds out about the horse race, he wants to bring Sisi back to Vienna.

Sisi is putting the last pieces of the puzzle of the great family secret together. She travels back to Bavaria to convince her mother to finally tell her the truth. Louis, meanwhile, is faced with the decision of having to give up his love for Henriette. And Sophie Charlotte gets to know King Ludwig's vulnerable side. Sisi finally defies Franz and takes part in the final horse race, thereby risking her husband's love.