Andreas, marrying Cäzilia, by no means a beauty, five years older than him, and also a widow who inherited the farm, was most likely guided by cold calculation. A marriage for love? Hardly. Rather, it was a deal, beneficial to both parties. Andreas received the farm and stability, Cäzilia – protection and continuation of the family line. The couple had children, but an evil fate haunted the Gruber family: only Victoria lived to adulthood, the rest died in infancy, as, unfortunately, often happened in those days.

And now Victoria, like a bud, blossoms, turning into an attractive girl. And Andreas, a man in the prime of his life, suddenly realizes that he has power not only over his hateful wife, but also over his daughter, who is completely dependent on him. Impunity and power intoxicate the mind. What can stop the master of the farm, the head of the family, a man accustomed to unquestioning obedience, from satisfying his dark desires?

As the English historian John Dalberg-Acton said, «Power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolutely.» And Andreas, endowed with unlimited power over his family, could succumb to temptation and turn Victoria’s life into a nightmare.

Did Cäzilia know about the incest? Most likely, yes. In close-knit rural communities, it is difficult to hide the truth, especially if it hangs in the air like the heavy smell of decay. Perhaps she noticed Andreas’s glances, his touches, heard snippets of conversations, felt the oppressive atmosphere in the house. But, being a dependent, intimidated, or simply tired of fighting woman, Cäzilia preferred to close her eyes to what was happening. The wife knew about the incest, but knowing does not mean acting. Whether out of outright fear of her husband, or content with the material well-being he provided, she preferred to remain in the shadows, not trying to change anything. Her silence became complicity in the crime, a tragedy that played out within the walls of the Hinterkaifeck farm.

In the dim light of the old church, where the scent of incense mingled with the smell of damp earth, Victoria, trembling all over, knelt before the confessional. Her head was pounding, her heart was beating wildly, like a bird thrashing in a cage. She had been summoning her courage for a long time, putting off this moment, but the burden of secrecy became unbearable, threatening to crush her.

Behind the thin partition, the priest, Father Huber, was waiting for her in silence. Kind, responsive, he seemed to her the only person capable of understanding her pain. Taking a deep breath, Victoria began her confession, trying to speak quietly, almost in a whisper, as if afraid that the walls would overhear her words.

«Father… I… have sinned…» she began, uttering the words with difficulty.

The priest, leaning closer to the grate, replied in a calm, encouraging voice: «Do not be afraid, my daughter. God is merciful. Speak and ease your soul.»

Summoning her courage, Victoria blurted out in one breath: «I… I am in an intimate relationship with my father… since I was sixteen years old…»

Silence reigned in the confessional, so thick that it could be touched. Victoria held her breath, awaiting the priest’s reaction. She hoped for words of comfort, for forgiveness, for advice on how to get out of this nightmare.

Finally, Father Huber broke the silence, and his voice contained not only compassion, but also horror: «My daughter… what you are saying is monstrous… This is a vile sin, defiling not only you, but also your family, and the very land on which you live…»

Victoria wept, burying her face in her hands. She knew that her sin was terrible, but she did not expect the priest to speak to her in such a tone. She had hoped for understanding, but received only condemnation.

«What should I do, Father? How can I atone for my sin? How can I get rid of this nightmare?» she asked through her tears.

The priest was silent for a moment, and then said in a quiet but firm voice: «I… I must think, my daughter. What you have told me requires serious consideration. I will pray for you, and tomorrow morning I will inform you of my decision.»

Victoria thanked the priest and left the church, feeling even more devastated and depressed than before. The hope that had barely sparked in her heart faded, leaving behind only the cold ashes of disappointment.

She did not yet know that Father Huber, instead of seeking a spiritual solution to the problem, had decided to turn to the secular authorities. Considering Andreas’s sin so monstrous that it surpassed all church laws, the priest violated the secrecy of confession and reported the incident to the sheriff, believing that in this way he could protect Victoria and stop the evil that was happening within the walls of the Hinterkaifeck farm. He could not have imagined the tragic consequences to which his «good intention’ would lead.

The rumor of incest, like a bad reputation, quickly spread throughout the district, poisoning relations between the Grubers and their neighbors. Instead of sympathy, they met with alienation. People tried not to run into them on the street, avoided conversations, as if afraid that the sin would spread to them too.

Behind their backs they whispered:

«I know nothing about the Gruber’s family relationships. However, there were rumors that Gruber mistreated his wife. It was further said that Gruber committed a bloody dishonor with his daughter.»

«I have heard stories that the father (Gruber Andreas) committed a blood connection with his biological daughter (Mrs. Gabriel). I don’t know exactly when this happened; I only learned about it after these two were imprisoned for it. In my opinion, these two committed a bloody disgrace at a time when she was already married to Klaus Briel. I draw this conclusion because the young farmer (Klaus Briel) abandoned his wife and returned to his childhood home. I don’t know how long he was absent at that time. I myself did not live in Groben at that time, as I was serving in Fontenay.»

The isolation of the Gruber family became increasingly palpable, and the shame – increasingly unbearable.

The Grubers, already unsociable, became even more withdrawn. The Hinterkaifeck farm turned into their personal world, where they were left to their own devices. Trips to the village for necessities turned into an unpleasant duty, and communication with neighbors – into a formality.

In 1915, after several months of agonizing preliminary investigation, Weidhofen froze in anticipation. In the courtroom, reeking of dampness and mothballs from old uniforms, a trial began that could overturn the foundations of the entire district: the trial of Andreas Gruber and Victoria Gabriel.

Only fragmentary information about that trial has survived. The minutes of the court session have disappeared without a trace, leaving historians and biographers only room for speculation. It is unknown who exactly initiated the case, who gave the first testimony, who dared to break the long-standing silence of Hinterkaifeck.

In court, everything was turned upside down. Victoria, who had expected sympathy and help, appeared before the court as an accomplice in the crime. She was accused of not resisting her father’s will, of remaining silent, covering up his sin. Andreas Gruber, on the contrary, held himself arrogantly and confidently, denying all the charges. What they actually said, what arguments they presented, remained a mystery.

One cannot rule out that there was no publicity at all, but only a piece of evidence. The prosecution, representing the state, may have used it to initiate legal proceedings. After all, in criminal proceedings, the victims only supplement the lawsuit, the main role is played by the prosecution, represented by the state.

The court delivered its verdict: Victoria Gabriel was found guilty and sentenced to one month in prison. Andreas Gruber received a more severe punishment – one year in prison. A sentence that caused surprise and whispers in the village. Was this justice or just a semblance of justice? After all, the perpetrator of a brutal crime got away with such a lenient punishment.

Who could have reported the Grubers’ sins? Suspicion fell on Maximilian Altmann, Victoria’s half-brother. This fact added dark colors to an already dark picture. Martin, as some believed, may have been a witness to this connection between his sister and stepfather. Perhaps he had kept this terrible secret to himself for many years, fueled by his own resentment. After all, after his father’s death, Martin received only a paltry 100 marks of inheritance, while his sister Cäzilia Starringer became richer by as much as 700 marks. Could envy and a thirst for justice have pushed him to betrayal?

Martin was the only male heir, and who knows what thoughts were swirling in his head. Perhaps he considered himself more worthy of managing the farm than his half-sister, and this trial was his way of regaining his lost position. It is quite likely that revenge became his only way to drown out years of pain and humiliation.

However, it remained unclear how Martin could calmly live under the same roof with people he had accused of such a terrible crime. Victoria, the powerful mistress of the farm, would surely not tolerate the presence of a traitor. Unless, of course, Martin was cunning enough to remain in the shadows, acting anonymously, leaking information to the prosecutor’s office, while remaining unnoticed in Hinterkaifeck. The true motives of Maximilian Altmann will forever remain a mystery, buried beneath a layer of time and gossip.

According to another version, Victoria Bauer revealed the secret. There were rumors that it was to her, her namesake, that Victoria Gabriel confided in a fit of despair, pouring out her soul and telling about the dark secret that tormented her. Perhaps Bauer, driven by moral principles or sympathy for her friend, could not keep this terrible secret. Maybe she tried to persuade Victoria Gabriel to turn to the authorities, and when she refused, she took a desperate step and sent an anonymous denunciation. Perhaps she hoped to save Victoria from her father’s power, even against her will. What exactly prompted Victoria Bauer to such an act – sympathy, a sense of duty, or something else – will forever remain a mystery.

Yet another version linked the trial to the Gabriel family. Many drew attention to the fact that the case of blood revenge was initiated shortly before the birth of Cäzilia, Victoria’s daughter. This suggested that the birth of the child and the subsequent accusation were somehow connected. Klaus Briel Sr., the father of Klaus who died in the war, may have long suspected an unhealthy relationship between Victoria and her father.

It is possible that the Gabriel family doubted Cäzilia’s paternity. Any doubt about the child’s origin could serve as a motive for revenge.

Perhaps it was Klaus Briel Sr. who anonymously informed the authorities about the crime, wanting to avenge his son’s violated honor and protect the purity of his blood.

Moreover, at that time, a dispute arose between the Gabriel and Gruber families over the inheritance of the deceased Klaus Jr., which could have prompted the old man to take decisive action. Perhaps this was a cunning move in the struggle for family lands, a carefully planned revenge, disguised as concern for justice.

Some whispered about the neighboring workers who were working on the reconstruction of Hinterkaifeck in those years. Josef Steinerr, in his later testimony, confirmed that between 1908 and 1909 the farm was bustling with activity, and local residents were helping the Grubers.

In his testimony, he stated:

«I was well acquainted with all the residents of Hinterkaifeck,» he claimed, «and even helped them harvest, including during the war when Klaus Briel died in France.» He knew everyone except the mysterious strangers who never appeared in the Hinterkaifeck yard.

There were rumors that old Gruber was maintaining «incest’ with his widowed daughter, and Steinerr even claimed to have seen gendarmes arrest him for it in the meadow – a case shrouded in the fog of time and casting doubt on the veracity of the memories.

Steiner didn’t know how Victoria behaved with men after her husband’s death, but he remembered that once she was «in blessed circumstances’, and everyone in the village gossiped that the child’s father was her own father. And this concerned not Cäzilia, who had already grown up on the estate, but that boy, who died as a result of the murder… but we will return to this later. Steiner even remembered the autumn day in 1919 when he was helping to thresh grain on the farm. Then the old man Gruber dropped a strange phrase: «Oh, May Bubben («my friends’ in the local dialect’), I hardly went to sleep this night… last night a young woman gave birth… Yes, from my point of view, it would be whoever wanted it, including Bauersepp because of me!»»

I apologize again for the previous errors. I’ve tried my best to provide you with an accurate translation of this section.

Under «Bauersepp’, as everyone understood, Gruber meant himself, indirectly admitting his involvement in his daughter’s pregnancy and expressing dissatisfaction with the child’s father. Who this father was remained only to be guessed. But one thing was clear: the secrets of Hinterkaifeck, like a thick fog, shrouded every event, distorting and refracting the truth.

Perhaps, during these works, amidst the noise of saws and axes, one of them managed to see or hear what was hidden behind the closed doors of the house. They watched the lives of the inhabitants of Hinterkaifeck, noticed oddities in the relationship between father and daughter, and these observations, like seeds, long sprouted in their minds.

But why then did they remain silent for so many years? If they really witnessed a crime, why did the anonymous denunciation appear only years later? Perhaps fear of Andreas Gruber, a powerful and cruel man, forced them to remain silent. Or maybe they were just waiting for the right moment, until the burden of guilt and silence became unbearable.

But, of course, one could not exclude the possibility that all these versions were only speculation and fantasies, born of popular rumor. Perhaps none of the people listed had anything to do with this story. Perhaps the anonymous denunciation was the work of a completely different person, whose motives and name will forever remain a secret. And, perhaps, all these assumptions and conjectures are just an attempt to fill the void created by the absence of truth.

The Neuburg an der Donau Prosecutor’s Office filed charges as part of case number Str.P.Reg. 105/15, and on May 28, 1915, the court delivered its verdict. Andreas Gruber and Victoria Gabriel were found guilty of a crime against morality, better known as «shame on blood’. The court considered proven the fact of incestuous relations that took place between 1907 and 1910.

Article 173 of the German Criminal Code, which was in force in those years (from January 1, 1872, to October 1, 1953), regulated the punishment for incest, that is, sexual relations between close relatives. It was under this article that Gruber and Gabriel were most likely convicted. The article stated:

(1) Sexual intercourse between relatives in the ascending and descending line (for example, between father and daughter, grandfather and granddaughter) shall be punished for the first case by imprisonment for a term of up to five years, for the second case by imprisonment for a term of up to two years.

(2) Sexual intercourse between relatives in the collateral line (brothers and sisters) shall be punished by imprisonment for a term of up to two years.

(3) In addition to imprisonment, the court could deprive the convicts of civil rights.

(4) Minor (under eighteen years of age) relatives were exempt from punishment.

But why was incest punishable by law? The prohibition of incest has deep historical roots and is associated with a number of factors. First of all, it is concern for the health of offspring. Genetically close relatives, entering into sexual relations, increase the likelihood of transmission of recessive (hidden) genes responsible for hereditary diseases. As a result, children may be born with physical deformities, mental retardation, and other health problems.

In addition, the prohibition of incest contributed to the maintenance of social stability. It regulated marital relations, created clear boundaries between families, and prevented conflicts over the distribution of resources and power. Incest, by destroying these boundaries, could lead to chaos and the disintegration of society.

In a religious context, incest was often seen as a desecration, a violation of divine commandments and, as a result, a sin. In Christianity, for example, the prohibition of incest was part of the moral code and served to strengthen family values.

The trial of Gruber and Gabriel was a stark reminder of the moral norms that prevailed in German society at that time. It reflected the struggle to preserve these norms, to protect the family and the health of future generations. But, as the history of Hinterkaifeck showed, these norms could not always withstand the dark secrets hidden in the depths of the human soul.

Andreas Gruber, having served a year in prison for incest, returned to Hinterkaifeck. This was a slap in the face to the public, a mockery of law and morality. He seemed to be saying to everyone: «You can’t do anything to me.» And indeed, what could ordinary peasants do against a man who, it seemed, feared neither God nor the devil?

Having returned, Gruber continued to live with Victoria as if nothing had happened. He seemed to be declaring his power over her, over the family, and over all of Hinterkaifeck. It was a demonstration of impunity that aroused only whispers of horror and disgust in the district.

How could Victoria live with a man who had abused her, with a father who should have been despised? How could the neighbors tolerate the presence of this monster? The answer lay in the atmosphere of fear and silence that reigned in Hinterkaifeck.