He managed to kill through impaling over noblemen along with their entire families. Also, he selected the bravest soldiers for his personal army and maintained their loyalty by offering them not only money but lands and houses and gold. But his cruelty was also seen as a weakness. The vengeful Saxon merchants and later, their descendants, took care to portray Vlad in horrifying postures that disgusted entire Europe.
Vlad was described as a sadist who used to drink the blood of his enemies, which amused torturing people or enjoyed serving the meals watching dead bodies hanged in spires.
He was also accused of eating human flesh, which was a huge insult for an Orthodox Christian ruler like him. Even if all those writings meant to discredit Vlad, no one could tell for sure if they are completely false or not. Vampires and werewolves, immortal counts, and mysterious places are, apparently, some of the most long-lasting themes of Hollywood, and the recent huge success of movies Twilight or Blade is just the top of the iceberg. There is a constant fascination about vampires that seems to defy time easily.
And we must confess that life without Dracula would be pretty dull. So, thank you, Mr. And it also changed the status of Romania, which rapidly came out of the crowd becoming the more or less official country of all vampires.
Labeling Vlad as a human flesh-eater, sadist, merciless, and Devil worshiper, especially by the Saxons and the Ottomans chroniclers of XV-XVII centuries, can be considered one of the first, best, vast and long-lasting campaigns of negative branding ever. These papers are, in fact, the birth certificates of future Dracula and other vampires like Lestat or Armand from The Vampire Chronicles series of Anne Rice. Michael Beheim, a German writer contemporary with Vlad, wrote in his Dracula poem, which framed the leader in very dark colors.
More than one hundred years later, the German poet Fischaret wrote Flohhatz, describing Dracula walking among dead peoples enjoying his meal. In , Johann Christian Engel, in his book The History of Moldavia and Wallachia, described Vlad as a merciless despot, and many claim that this paper was one of the main sources of inspiration for Bram Stoker and his famous character Count Dracula.
The Historian, the debut novel of American Elizabeth Johnson Kostova, has finally brought a balance between fiction and real history, and the novel had great success.
Vlad the Impaler seems to be an endless source of inspiration, and even if almost all the writings depict him in unfavorable contexts, he still succeeds somehow to fascinate us through his unique and versatile personality.
The Ottoman war started when Vlad refused to pay tribute to the Sultan. The Ottoman Empire was furious because a prince raised by them grew rebellious, so Sultan Mehmed II decided to put an end to it.
And thus, the fierce reputation of Vlad the Impaler as a ruthless ruler began. Vlad's court chroniclers noted the ruler's personal records very precisely. In Oblucitia and Nevoselo, 1. Vlad harassed the Ottomans with many unexpected night attacks and constantly destroyed their possible food sources and poisoned the water wells, thus leading to a demoralized Ottoman army. On the night of June 16, Vlad the Impaler, together with a handful of men, organized a night attack on the Ottoman army.
They entered the enemy camp disguised as Turks and attempted to capture or assassinate the Sultan. Even though they didn't succeed, the Turks started killing each other because of the confusion created by the disguise of Vlad's force.
Painting by Theodor Aman. It is possible for tourists to visit one castle where Vlad III certainly spent time. In , archaeologists found the likely location of the dungeon, according to Smithsonian Magazine.
Tokat Castle is located in northern Turkey. It is an eerie place with secret tunnels and dungeons that is currently under restoration and open to the public. This designation earned Vlad II a new surname: Dracul.
The name came from the old Romanian word for dragon, "drac. In modern Romanian, the word "drac" refers to another feared creature — the devil, Curta said. McNally in their book "In Search of Dracula. The Order of the Dragon was devoted to a singular task: the defeat of the Turkish, or Ottoman Empire. But the meeting was actually a trap: All three were arrested and held hostage. The elder Vlad was released under the condition that he leave his sons behind.
Under the Ottomans, Vlad and his younger brother were tutored in science, philosophy and the arts. Vlad also became a skilled horseman and warrior, according to Radu Florescu and Raymond McNally, former professors of history at Boston College, who wrote several books about Vlad III — as well as his alleged connection to Stoker's Dracula — in the s and s.
But Vlad held enmity, and I think it was one of his motivating factors for fighting the Turks: to get even with them for having held him captive. While Vlad and Radu were in Ottoman hands, Vlad's father was fighting to keep his place as voivode of Wallachia, a fight he would eventually lose.
In , Vlad accompanied his father and his 7-year-old brother Radu on a diplomatic mission in the heart of the Ottoman Empire.
However the three were captured and held hostage by the Ottoman diplomats. Their captors told Vlad II that he could be released — on condition that the two sons remain. Believing that it was the safest option for his family, Vlad II agreed. During the 5 years of captivity in the fortress, Vlad and his brother were taught lessons in the art of war, science and philosophy. However some accounts state that he was also subjected to torture and beatings, and it was thought that it was during this time that he developed his hated of the Ottomans.
Upon his return, Vlad II was overthrown in a coup orchestrated by local war lords known as the boyar. He was killed in the marshes behind his house while his oldest son, Mircea II, was tortured, blinded and buried alive. To consolidate power and assert his dominance, he decided to hold a banquet and invited hundreds of members of his rival families. Knowing his authority would be challenged, he had his guests stabbed and their still-twitching bodies impaled on spikes.
The rest of Vlad's family, however, fared even worse: His father was ousted as ruler of Wallachia by local warlords boyars and was killed in the swamps near Balteni, Wallachia, in Vlad's older brother, Mircea, was tortured, blinded and buried alive. Whether these events turned Vlad III Dracula "son of the dragon" into a ruthless killer is a matter of historical speculation. What is certain, however, is that once Vlad was freed from Ottoman captivity shortly after his family's death, his reign of blood began.
In , the city of Constantinople fell to the Ottomans, threatening all of Europe with an invasion. Vlad was charged with leading a force to defend Wallachia from an invasion. His battle to protect his homeland was victorious: Legend holds that he personally beheaded his opponent, Vladislav II, in one-on-one combat. Though he was now ruler of the principality of Wallachia, his lands were in a ruinous state due to constant warfare and the internal strife caused by feuding boyars.
To consolidate power, Vlad invited hundreds of them to a banquet. Knowing his authority would be challenged, he had his guests stabbed and their still-twitching bodies impaled. What is impaling?
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