Christel, the beautiful, blonde daughter of the old master blacksmith Wangen, and the young, handsome student Fritz von Hohenstein have fallen in love. The two spend a happy, carefree time on the banks of the Rhine. This does not fit in at all with the concept of the court clerk Ensser, as the devious officer himself has his eye on the attractive blonde. When he asks for her hand in marriage, Christel immediately rejects him.