VLAD III, THE IMPALER

Vlad III, Prince of Wallachia (c. 1431 December 1476), more commonly known as the Impaler (Romanian: Vlad epe
pronounced ['vlad 'ttsepe]) or Draculea, was a three-time voivode of Wallachia, ruling mainly from 1456 to 1462.
Historically, Vlad is best known for his resistance to the Ottoman Empire and its expansion[4] and for the cruel punishments
he imposed on his enemies.[5]
In the English-speaking world, Vlad III is perhaps most commonly known for inspiring the name of the vampire in Bram
Stoker's 1897 novel Dracula.[6]
Contents
[hide]
* 1 Names
o 1.1 Early life
o 1.2 Hostage
o 1.3 First reign and exile
o 1.4 Second reign
+ 1.4.1 Internal policy
+ 1.4.2 Raids into Transylvania
+ 1.4.3 War with the Ottomans
o 1.5 First marriage
o 1.6 Captivity in Hungary
o 1.7 Second marriage
o 1.8 Third reign and death
* 2 Legacy
o 2.1 Methods of execution
o 2.2 German stories about Vlad the Impaler
o 2.3 Russian stories about Vlad the Impaler
o 2.4 Vampire legend
o 2.5 Romanian attitudes
* 3 Film adaptations
* 4 Popular culture
* 5 Notes
* 6 References
* 7 External links
[edit] Names
His Romanian surname Dracula (also spelled "Draculea", "Drakulya,"drackuliea"), which Vlad was referred to in several
documents, means "Son of the dragon" and points to his father, Vlad Dracul, who received that moniker from his subjects
because he had joined the Order of the Dragon. Dracul, derived from the Latin word Draco meant "dragon", though in
modern Romanian it means "devil".
His post-mortem moniker of "epe" ("Impaler") originated in his killing opponents by impalement, a practice popularized
by medieval Transylvanian pamphlets. In Turkish, he was known as "Kazkl Voyvoda" (pronounced [kzk']) which
means "Impaler Prince".
[edit] Early life
In the year of Vlad Dracula's birth, his father Vlad II, known also under the nickname the Dragon (Romanian: Dracul) had
traveled to Nuremberg, today located in Germany, where he had been vested into the Order of the Dragon. At the age of five,
young Vlad was also initiated into the Order[citation needed].
Like his father, who was the son of the Wallachian voivode Mircea the Elder, in the early years of childhood, the future ruling
prince Vlad the Impaler got a distinguished education, and mastered German and Latin. During the first reign of Vlad II, Vlad
the Impaler accompanied his father to Targoviste - capital of Wallachia at that time.
The Byzantine chancellor Mikhail Doukas showed that, at Targoviste, the sons of boyars and ruling princes got a
distinguished education from either Romanian or Greek scholars, coming from Constantinople. The young prince learned for
sure; combat skills, geography, mathematics, science, language; Romanian, Latin, Paleo-Slavic (church Slavic) and the
classical arts and philosophy.[7]
[edit] Hostage

In 1436, Dracul ascended the throne of Wallachia. He was ousted in 1442 by rival factions in league with Hungary, but
secured Ottoman support for his return agreeing to pay tribute to the Sultan and also send his two younger sons, Vlad and
Radu, to the Ottoman court, to serve as hostages of his loyalty.
Vlad was locked up in an underground prison and often whipped for being stubborn and rude, while his younger brother
Radu caught the eye of Sultan Murad II's son, Mehmed II, and was allowed into the Ottoman royal court. These years had a
great influence on Vlad's character and led to Vlad's well-known hatred for Radu and Mehmed II, even after he became
sultan. According to McNally and Florescu, he also distrusted his own father for trading him to the Turks and betraying the
Order of the Dragon's oath to fight them. It was in Turkey where Vlad first witnessed impalement.[8]
Vlad was taken to be educated in logic, the Qur'an and the Turkish language, which he spoke fluently in later years [9]. He
and his brother were also trained in warfare and riding horses. The boys' father, Vlad Dracul, was released quickly, in 1443,
and with the support of the Ottomans he returned to Wallachia and took back his throne from Basarab II.
Bust of Vlad the Impaler near the birthplace plate
[edit] First reign and exile
In December 1447, boyars in league with the Hungarian regent John Hunyadi rebelled against Vlad Dracul and killed him in
the marshes near Blteni. Mircea, Dracul's eldest son and heir, was blinded with hot iron stakes and buried alive at
Trgovite.
To prevent Wallachia from falling into the Hungarian fold, the Ottomans invaded Wallachia and put young Vlad III on the
throne. However, this rule was short-lived as Hunyadi himself now invaded Wallachia and restored his ally Vladislav II, of
the Danesti clan, to the throne.
Vlad fled to Moldavia, where he lived under the protection of his uncle, Bogdan II. In October 1451, Bogdan was
assassinated and Vlad fled to Hungary. Impressed by Vlad's vast knowledge of the mindset and inner workings of the
Ottoman Empire as well as his hatred of the new sultan Mehmed II, Hunyadi reconciled with his former rival and made him
his advisor.
In 1453, the Ottomans, under Sultan Mehmed II took Constantinople after a prolonged siege, putting an end to the final major
Christian presence in the eastern Mediterranean, after which Ottoman influence began to spread from this base through the
Carpathians, threatening mainland Europe.
In 1456, three years after the Ottomans had conquered Constantinople, they threatened Hungary by besieging Belgrade.
Hunyadi began a concerted counter-attack in Serbia: while he himself moved into Serbia and relieved the siege (before dying
of the plague), Vlad led his own contingent into Wallachia, reconquered his native land and killed Vladislav II in hand to
hand combat.
[edit] Second reign
[edit] Internal policy
Vlad found Wallachia in a wretched state: constant war had resulted in rampant crime, falling agricultural production, and the
virtual disappearance of trade. Regarding a stable economy essential to resisting external enemies, he used severe methods to
restore order and prosperity.
Vlad had three aims for Wallachia: to strengthen the country's economy, its defense and his own political power. He took
measures to help the peasants' wellbeing by building new villages and raising the agricultural surfaces. He understood the
importance of trade for the development of Wallachia. He helped the Wallachian merchants by limiting foreigner merchant
trades only to three market towns: Targusor, Campulung and Targoviste.
Vlad considered the boyars the chief cause of constant strife as well as of the death of his father and brother. To secure his
rule, he had many leading nobles killed and gave positions in his council, traditionally belonging to the greatest boyars, to
persons of obscure origins, who would be loyal to him alone, and some to foreigners. For lower offices, Vlad preferred
knights and free peasants to boyars. In the aim to clean up Wallachia Vlad gave new laws punishing the thieves and the
burglars. Vlad treated the boyars with the same harshness, because they were guilty of weakening Wallachia through their
internal struggles for power.
The army was also strengthened. He had a small personal guard mostly of mercenaries, who were rewarded with the wealth
of those killed in battles. Another reward for the soldiers was their raise in rank. Adding to his guard he formed the lesser
army made up from peasants called to fight when ever war came.
Vlad Dracula built a church at Targusor (allegedly in the memory of his father and older brother who were killed nearby), and
he contributed with money to the Snagov Monastery and to the Comana Monastery fortifications.[10]

[edit] Raids into Transylvania

Since the Wallachian nobility was linked to the Transylvanian Saxons, Vlad also acted against them by eliminating their trade
privileges and raiding their cities. In 1459, he had several Saxon settlers of Kronstadt impaled.[11]
Vlad was also on guard against the rival Dneti clan, and some of his raids into Transylvania may have been aimed at
capturing potential challengers. Several members of the clan died at Vlad's hands, including a Dneti prince suspected to
have taken part in his brother Mircea's murder. Vlad condemned him to death and forced him to read his own eulogy while
kneeling before his open grave.
[edit] War with the Ottomans
Vlad allied himself with Matthias Corvinus, Hunyadi's son who had risen to be King of Hungary. Wallachia controlled her
side of the Danube and Sultan Mehmed II wanted to have control over the river, as naval attacks could be launched against
his empire all the way from the Holy Roman Empire. On September 26, 1459, Pope Pius II called for a new crusade against
the Ottomans and on January 14, 1460, at the Congress of Mantua, the Pope proclaimed the official crusade that was to last
for three years. His plan, however, failed and the only European leader that showed enthusiasm for the crusade was Vlad
epe, whom the Pope held in high regard.
Later that year, in 1459, Mehmed sent envoys to epe to urge him to pay the delayed tribute. Vlad refused to pay the tribute,
of 10,000 ducats and 500 young boys, to the Ottomans. To provoke Mehmed, Vlad had the envoys killed, by nailing their
turbans to their heads. Subsequently, the Ottomans attempted to remove him, and the Turks crossed the Danube and started to
do their own recruiting, to which epe reacted by capturing the Turks and impaling them.[12]
Meanwhile, the Sultan received intelligence reports that revealed epe's alliance with Hungarian king, Matthias Corvinus.
The Sultan knew he could not stop the alliance, so he tried to kidnap Vlad for whatever reason.[13] He sent the bey of
Nicopolis, Hamza Pasha, to stage a diplomatic meeting with Vlad at Giurgiu, but with orders to ambush him there; and
thereafter, take him to Constantinople: "no matter how: by tricks, under oath, or any other kind of trap".[13]
Vlad epe was forewarned about the ambush and planned to set an ambush of his own. Hamza brought with him 1,000
cavalry and when passing through a narrow pass north of Giurgiu, epe launched a surprise-attack. The Wallachians had the
Turks surrounded and fired with their handgunners until the entire expedition-force was killed. The Turk's plans were
thwarted and some of them caught and impaled, and Hamza took the highest stake according to his rank.[13]
In the winter of 1461/1462 Vlad crossed the Danube and devastated the area between Serbia and the Black Sea. Disguising
himself as a Turk, he infiltrated the fortress and destroyed it. In a letter to Corvinus dated February 2nd, he wrote: "I have
killed men and women, old and young... 23,884 Turks and Bulgarians without counting those whom we burned alive in their
homes or whose heads were not chopped off by our soldiers..."[11]. The Christians were spared and many of them were
settled in Wallachia.[12]
In response to this, Sultan Mehmed II raised an army of around 60,000 troops and 30,000 irregulars[14] and in the spring of
1462 headed towards Wallachia. Mehmed was greeted by a forest of stakes on which Vlad had impaled 20,000 of Mehmed's
previous Ottoman army.[15] Commanding between 20,000 and 40,000 men, Vlad was unable to stop the Ottomans from
entering Wallachia and occupying the capital Trgovite on 4 June 1462. Subsequently, he resorted to guerrilla warfare,
constantly organizing small attacks and ambushes on the Turks. The most famous of these attacks occurred on June 16/17,
when during the night Vlad and some of his men (wearing Ottoman disguises again) entered the main Turkish camp and
attempted to assassinate Mehmed, though the assassination attempt failed.
Another attack took place on the night of the 23rd June. Vlad needed to go to Chilia, but he left 6,000 of his men to pursue
the retreating Ottoman enemy. He decided to attack the Turks once again and surprised the rear-guard of Iosuf Bey, which
soon was forced to flee. Turkhanbeyoglu Omer Bey helped the Ottoman army and forced the overwhelmed and outnumbered
Wallachians to retreat into the woods.
There was another battle near Buzau soon after, when 15,000 Wallachians defeated the Turkish light cavalry of Evrenos Bey.
On the 29th June Mehmed II reached Braila, which he burned to the ground and then crossed the Danube.[16]
Vlad the Impaler's attack was celebrated among the Saxon cities of Transylvania, the Italian states and the Pope. A Venetian
envoy, upon hearing about the news at the court of Corvinus on March 4, expressed great joy and said that the whole of
Christianity should celebrate Vlad epe's successful campaign. The Genoese from Caffa also thanked Vlad, for his
campaign had saved them from an attack of some 300 ships that the sultan planned to send against them.Many Turks were
now frightened of Vlad epe and left the European side of their empire and moved into Anatolia.[12]
Unable to subdue Vlad, and demoralised at the sight of their comrades, the Ottomans left the country and left Vlad's half-

brother, Radu the Handsome, north of the Danube in charge of the warfare. Vlad defeated another army in July 1462, killing
4,000 of Radu's troops. But many boyars, who had been alienated by Vlad's policy, joined Radu; thinking Ottoman protection
was better. Others had their families taken hostage by the Turks and also joined Radu.
Until the 8th September, Vlad obtained another 3 victories. But continuous war had left him without any money and he could
no longer pay his mercenaries. Vlad travelled to Hungary to ask for help from his former ally, Matthias Corvin. But instead of
receiving help he found himself arrested and imprisoned for high treason[17].
[edit] First marriage
Vlad's first wife was a Transylvanian noblewoman whose name is unknown. She bore him at least one son, Mihnea cel Ru,
who would later rule Wallachia 1508 to 1510.
Vlad's first wife died during the siege of Poienari Castle, which was surrounded by the Ottoman army led by Radu. An archer
having seen the shadow of Vlad's wife behind a window, shot an arrow through the window into Vlad's main quarters, with a
message warning him that Radu's army was approaching. McNally and Florescu explain that the archer was one of Vlad's
relatives, who sent the warning out of loyalty despite having converted to Islam to escape enslavement by the Turks. Upon
reading the message, Vlad's wife threw herself from the tower into a tributary of the Arge River flowing below the castle.
According to legend, she remarked that she "would rather have her body rot and be eaten by the fish of the Arge than be led
into captivity by the Turks". Today, the tributary is called Rul Doamnei (the "Lady's River", also called the Princess's River).
This legend is the only known historical reference to Vlad's first wife.
[edit] Captivity in Hungary
Matthias Corvinus had received from the Pope a consistent financial support to fight against the Turks. But he had spent the
money on completely different purposes. He now had the Ottomans at his borders, and needed someone to use as a scapegoat.
When Vlad came to him to ask for his help with fighting the war, Corvinus arrested him using false documents: a forged
letter, in which Vlad pledged loyalty to Mehmed II and promised to strike an agreement with the Ottomans over Wallachia.
Vlad imprisoned at Oratia, a fortress located at Podu Dambovitei Bridge. A period of imprisonment in Visegrad, near Buda
followed, where the Wallachian prince was held for 10 years. Then he was imprisoned in Buda. [1]
The exact length of Vlad's period of captivity is open to some debate, though indications are that it was from 1462 until 1474.
Diplomatic correspondence from Buda seems to indicate that the period of Vlad's effective confinement was relatively short.
Radu's openly pro-Ottoman policy as voivod probably contributed to Vlad's rehabilitation. During his captivity, some sources
say Vlad also converted to Catholicism, in contrast to his brother who converted to Islam, if the conversion happened at all.
[edit] Second marriage
Gradually winning back King Matthias's favour, he married Ilona Szilgyi, a cousin of the king, and in the years before his
final release in 1474, lived with her in a house in the Hungarian capital.
Around 1465, Ilona bore him two sons: the elder, Vlad IV Dracula, who spent most of his time in king Matthias' retinue and
later was an unsuccessful claimant to the Wallachian throne. The younger, whose name is unknown, lived with the Bishop of
Oradea in Transylvania until 1482, when he fell ill. He returned to Buda, where he died in his mother's presence.[18]. The
descendants of Vlad and Ilona married into Hungarian nobility.
[edit] Third reign and death
On 26th November 1476, the High Council decided Vlad was to be enthroned. Vlad began preparations for the reconquest of
Wallachia and in 1476, with Hungarian support, invaded the country. Vlads third reign lasted little more than two months
when he was killed on the battlefield against the Ottomans near Bucharest in 1476. [19]
The Turks decapitated his corpse and sent the head to Constantinople, where the Sultan had it displayed on a stake as proof
that the Impaler was finally dead. The exact location of his remains is unknown. One theory is that Vlad's remains may be
located at the Comana monastery.[20] The other theory is that Vlad is buried at Snagov, an island monastery located near
Bucharest.[21]
[edit] Legacy
[edit] Methods of execution
Woodblock print of Vlad the Impaler dining in the presence of numerous impaled corpses
When he came to power Vlad ruled with the intention of exacting revenge on the boyars for killing his father and eldest
brother. Though Vlad took nearly a decade to do so, he fulfilled this vow, completing the task on an Easter Sunday around
1457. The older boyars and their families were immediately impaled. The younger and healthier nobles and their families
were marched north from Trgovite to the ruins of Poienari Castle in the mountains above the Arge River, 40 miles north of

Trgovite. Vlad was determined to rebuild this ancient fortress as his own stronghold and refuge so he might monitor the
movements of the Hungarians coming through Transylvania and the Turks of the Ottoman Empire. The enslaved boyars, their
families and some master masons were forced to labor until their deaths, rebuilding the old castle with materials from another
nearby ruin. According to tradition, they labored until the clothes fell off their bodies and then were forced to continue
working naked. None survived the construction of castle Poienari, as those who did not die from exhaustion were impaled.
Throughout his reign, Vlad systematically eradicated the old boyar class of Wallachia. The old boyars had repeatedly
undermined the power of the prince during previous reigns and had been responsible for the violent overthrow of several
princes. Vlad was determined that his own power be on a modern and thoroughly secure footing. In place of the executed
boyars, Vlad promoted new men from among the free peasantry and middle class, who would be loyal only to their prince.
Vlad the Impaler's reputation was considerably darker in Western Europe than in Eastern Europe and Romania. The fame of
his cruelty spread in the form of a pamphlet, seriously exaggerated, and promoted by Mathias Corvinus. Matthias tarnished
Vlads reputation and credibility for a political reason: as an explanation for why he had not helped Vlad fight the Ottomans
in 1462, for which purpose he had received money from most Catholic states in Europe. Mathias employed the charges of
Southeastern Transylvania, and produced fake letters of high treason, written on the 7 November 1462.[22]
In the West, Vlad III epe has been characterized as a tyrant who took sadistic pleasure in torturing and killing his enemies.
The number of his victims ranges from 40,000 to 100,000.[23] According to the German stories the number of victims he had
killed was at least 80,000. In addition to the 80,000 victims mentioned he also had whole villages and fortresses destroyed
and burned to the ground.[24] These numbers are most likely exaggerated.[25]
The atrocities committed by Vlad in the German stories include impaling, torturing, burning, skinning, roasting, and boiling
people, feeding people the flesh of their friends or relatives, cutting off limbs, and drowning. All of these punishments mainly
came from things people did that displeased Vlad the most; stealing, lying, and adulterous relations. Other methods of
punishment included skinning the feet of thieves, then putting salt on them and letting goats lick off the salt. This was a way
that Vlad kept his people in order and taught them that stealing would not be tolerated in his lands. No exceptions were made:
he punished anyone who broke his laws, whether men or women, no matter the age, religion or social class.
Impalement was Vlad's preferred method of torture and execution. His method of torture was a horse attached to each of the
victim's legs as a sharpened stake was gradually forced into the body. The end of the stake was usually oiled (to ensure the
stake would not puncture any organs), and care was taken that the stake not be too sharp; else the victim might die too rapidly
from shock.[citation needed] Normally the stake was inserted into the body through the anus and was often forced through
the body until it emerged from the mouth.[citation needed] However, there were many instances where victims were impaled
through other bodily orifices or through the abdomen or chest.[citation needed] Infants were sometimes impaled on the stake
forced through their mother's chests.[citation needed] The records indicate that victims were sometimes impaled so that they
hung upside down on the stake.[citation needed][citation needed]
Death by impalement was slow and agonizing. Victims sometimes endured for hours or even days. Vlad often had the stakes
arranged in various geometric patterns. The most common pattern was a ring of concentric circles in the outskirts of a city
that constituted his target. The height of the spear indicated the rank of the victim. The corpses were often left decaying for
months.
There are claims that thousands of people were impaled at a single time. One such claim says 10,000 were impaled in the
Transylvanian city of Sibiu (where Vlad had once lived) in 1460.[citation needed] Another allegation asserts that during the
previous year, on Saint Bartholomew's Day (in August), Vlad had 30,000 of the merchants and officials of the Transylvanian
city of Braov impaled for breaking his authority.[citation needed] One of the most famous woodcuts of the period shows
Vlad feasting in a forest of stakes and their grisly burdens outside Braov, while a nearby executioner cuts apart other
victims. This place was known as the Forest of the Impaled. In this forest is a story of Vlad's "sense of humor": a servant was
holding his nose and Vlad said to him while feasting "why do you do that?" The servant replied, "I cannot stand the stench,
my lord!" Vlad immediately ordered him impaled and looks up at the servant saying, "then you shall live up there where the
stench cannot reach you." [26]
Vlad the Impaler is alleged to have committed even more impalements and other tortures against invading Ottoman forces. It
was reported that an invading Ottoman army turned back in fright when it encountered thousands of rotting corpses impaled
on the banks of the Danube.[11] It has also been said that in 1462 Mehmed II, the conqueror of Constantinople, a man noted
for his own psychological warfare tactics, returned to Constantinople after being sickened by the sight of 20,000 impaled
corpses outside Vlad's capital of Trgovite. Many of the victims were Turkish prisoners of war Vlad had previously captured
during the Turkish invasion. The total Turkish casualty toll in this battle reached over 40,000. The warrior sultan turned
command of the campaign against Vlad over to subordinates and returned to Constantinople, even though his army had
initially outnumbered Vlad's three to one and was better equipped. Vlad was also a courageous man- he led from the front; he
never let his soldiers do all the fighting. Vlad's blood-lust was deeper than impalement; he desired to be in battle as well.

[edit] German stories about Vlad the Impaler

Vlad the Impaler as Pontius Pilate judging Jesus Christ. National Gallery, Ljubljana, 1463
The German stories circulated first in manuscript form in the late 15th century and the first manuscript was probably written
in 1462 before Vlad's arrest.[25] The text was later printed in Germany and had major impact on the general public becoming
a best-seller of its time with numerous later editions adding and altering the original text.
In addition to the manuscripts and pamphlets the German version of the stories can be found in the poem of Michel Beheim.
The poem called "Von ainem wutrich der hies Trakle waida von der Walachei" ("Story of a Madman Called Dracula of
Wallachia") was written and performed at the court of Frederick III, Holy Roman Emperor during the winter of 1463.[27]
To this day four manuscripts and 13 pamphlets are found as well as the poem by Michel Beheim. The surviving manuscripts
date from the last quarter of the 15th century to the year 1500 and the found pamphlets date from 1488 to 15591568.
Eight of the pamphlets are incunabula: they were printed before 1501. The German stories about Vlad the Impaler consist of
46 short episodes, although none of the manuscripts, pamphlets or the poem of Beheim contain all 46 stories.
All of them begin with the story of the old governor, John Hunyadi, having Vlad's father killed, and how Vlad and his brother
renounced their old religion and swore to protect and uphold the Christian faith. After this, the order and titles of the stories
differs by manuscript and pamphlet editions.[24]
The German stories were written most likely for political reasons, especially to blacken the image of the Wallachian ruler.
The first version of the German text was probably written in Braov by a Saxon scholar. According to some researchers, the
writer expressed the general feelings of the Saxons in Braov and Sibiu who had borne the brunt of Vlads wrath in 1456
1457 and again in 14581459 and 1460.
Against this political and cultural backdrop, it is quite easy to understand the hostility towards Vlad the Impaler. Although
there is historic background for the events described in the German stories, some are either exaggerated or even fictitious.
The Hungarian king Matthias Corvinus, also had political reasons for promoting Vlad's image as an evil prince. Corvinus had
received large subsidies from Rome and Venice for the war against the Ottomans, but because of a conflict with Holy Roman
Emperor, Emperor Frederick III, he couldnt afford the military support for the fight.
By making Vlad a scapegoat, Corvinus could justify his reasons for not taking part in the war against the Ottomans. He
arrested Vlad and used a forged letter in which Vlad announced his loyalty to Mehmed II, as well as horror stories about
Vlad, to justify his actions to the Pope. In 1462 and 1463, the court in Buda fostered negative stories of Vlad in central and
Eastern Europe, and capitalized on the horrors attributed to him.[25]
The stories eventually changed from propaganda to literature and became very popular in the German world in the 15th and
16th centuries. Part of the reason for this success was the newly-invented printing press, which allowed the texts to filter to a
wide audience.
Vlad the Impaler as Aegeas, the Roman proconsul in Patras, crucifying Saint Andrew. Approximately 14701480, Belvedere
Galleries, Vienna
In later accounts of these stories, Vlad's atrocities against the people of Wallachia have sometimes been interpreted as
attempts to enforce his own moral code upon his country. According to the pamphlets, he appears to have been particularly
concerned with female chastity. Maidens who lost their virginity, adulterous wives, and unchaste widows were all targets of
Vlad's cruelty. Vlad also insisted that his people be honest and hard-working. Merchants who cheated their customers were
likely to find themselves mounted on a stake beside common thieves.
[edit] Russian stories about Vlad the Impaler
The Russian or the Slavic version of the stories about Vlad the Impaler called "Skazanie o Drakule voevode" ("The Tale of
Warlord Dracula") is thought to have been written sometime between 1481 and 1486. Copies were made from the 15th
century to the 18th century, of which some twenty-two extant manuscripts survive in Russian archives.[28] The oldest one,
from 1490, ends as follows: "First written in the year Byzantine calendar (1486), on 13 February; then transcribed by me, the
sinner Elfrosin, in the year 6998 (1490), on 28 January". The Tales of Prince Dracula is neither chronological nor consistent,
but mostly a collection of anecdotes of literary and historical value concerning Vlad epe.
There are 19 anecdotes in The Tales of Prince Dracula which are longer and more constructed than the German stories. It can
be divided into two sections: The first 13 episodes are non-chronological events most likely closer to the original folkloric
oral tradition about Vlad. The last six episodes are thought to have been written by a scholar who collected them, because
they are chronological and seem to be more structured. The stories begin with a short introduction and the anecdote about the

nailing of hats to ambassadors heads. They end with Vlad's death and information about his family.[29]
Of the 19 anecdotes there are ten that have similarities to the German stories.[30] Although there are similarities between the
Russian and the German stories about Vlad, there is a clear distinction with the attitude towards him. The Russian stories tend
to give him a more positive image: he is depicted as a great ruler, a brave soldier and a just sovereign. Stories of atrocities
tend to seem to be justified as the actions of a strong ruler. Of the 19 anecdotes, only four seem to have exaggerated violence.
[31] Some elements of the anecdotes were later added to Russian stories about Ivan the Terrible of Russia.[32]
The nationality and identity of the original writer of the anecdotes Dracula is disputed. The two most plausible explanations
are that the writer was either a Romanian priest or a monk from Transylvania, or a Romanian or Moldavian from the court of
Stephen the Great in Moldova. One theory claims the writer was a Russian diplomat named Fedor Kuritsyn.[33]
[edit] Vampire legend
See also: Dracula#Historical and geographical references
It is most likely that Bram Stoker found the name for his vampire from William Wilkinson's book, An Account of the
Principalities of Wallachia and Moldavia: with various Political Observations Relating to Them. It is known that Stoker made
notes about this book.[34] It is also suggested by some that because Stoker was a friend of a Hungarian professor (rmin
Vmbry) from Budapest, Vlad's name might have been mentioned by this friend. Regardless of how the name came to
Stoker's attention, the cruel history of the Impaler would have readily lent itself to Stoker's purposes. However, recent
research suggests that Stoker actually knew little about the Prince of Wallachia.[34]
The legend of the vampire was and still is deeply rooted in that region. There have always been vampire-like creatures in
various stories from across the world. However, the vampire, as he became known in Europe, largely originated in Southern
Slavic folklore although the tale is absent in Romanian culture. A veritable epidemic of vampirism swept through Eastern
Europe beginning in the late 17th century and continuing through the 1700s. The number of reported cases rose dramatically
in Hungary and the Balkans. From the Balkans, the "plague" spread westward into Germany, Italy, France, England, and
Spain. Travelers returning from the Balkans brought with them tales of the undead, igniting an interest in the vampire that has
continued to this day. Philosophers in the West began to study the phenomenon. It was during this period that Ludovico
Fatinelli wrote his famous treatise on vampirism in Hungary. It was also during this period that authors and playwrights first
began to explore the vampire legend. Stoker's novel was merely the culminating work of a long series of works that were
inspired by the reports coming from the Balkans and Hungary.
Given the history of the vampire legend in Europe, it is perhaps natural that Stoker should place his great vampire in the heart
of the region that gave birth to the story. Once Stoker had determined on a locality, Vlad Dracula would stand out as one of
the most notorious rulers of the selected region. He was obscure enough that few would recognize the name and those who
did would know him for his acts of brutal cruelty; Dracula was a natural candidate for vampirism.
[edit] Romanian attitudes
Romanian folklore and literature, on the other hand, paints Vlad epe as a hero. His reputation in his native country as a
man who stood up to both foreign and domestic enemies gives him the virtual opposite symbolism of Stoker's vampire. In
Romania he is considered one of the greatest leaders in the country's history, and was voted one of "100 Greatest Romanians"
in the "Mari Romni" television series aired in 2006.
A contemporary portrait of Vlad III, rediscovered by Romanian historians in the late 19th century, had been featured in the
gallery of horrors at Innsbruck's Ambras Castle. This original has been lost to history, but a larger copy, painted anonymously
in the latter half of the sixteenth century, now hangs in the same gallery[1][2]. This copy, unlike the all the cryptoportraits
contemporary with Vlad III, seems to have given him a Habsburg lip, although he was not a member of the Habsburg lineage.
His image in modern Romanian culture clashes with foreign perceptions. It is the last part of a rather popular 19th century
poem by Mihai Eminescu, "Scrisoarea a III-a", that helped turn Vlad's image into modern legend, by having him stand as a
figure to contrast with presumed social decay under the Phanariotes and the political scene of the 19th century (even
suggesting that Vlad's violent methods be applied as a cure). Notably though, the first author to depict Vlad as a Romanian
heroic character was a Transylvanian who probably never travelled to Wallachia, Ioan Budai-Deleanu. Around 1800 he wrote
a Romanian epic heroicomic poem, "iganiada", in which prince Vlad epe stars as a fierce warrior fighting the Ottomans.
Well in advance of Romanian literature at that time, this work, unlike Eminescu's, remained unpublished and ignored for a
century, and did not exert any influence.
All accounts of his life describe him as ruthless, but only the ones originating from his Saxon detractors paint him as sadistic
or insane. These pamphlets continued to be published long after his death, though usually for lurid entertainment rather than
propaganda purposes. It has largely been forgotten until recently that his tenacious efforts against the Ottoman Empire won
him many staunch supporters in his lifetime, not just in modern day Romania but in the Kingdom of Hungary, Poland, the
Republic of Venice, the Holy See, and the Balkans. A Hungarian court chronicler reported that King Matthias "had acted in

opposition to general opinion" in Hungary when he had Dracula imprisoned, and this played a considerable part in Matthias
reversing his unpopular decision. During his time as a "distinguished prisoner" before being fully pardoned and allowed to
reconquer Wallachia, Vlad was hailed as a Christian hero by visitors from all over Europe.
[edit] Film adaptations
Unlike the fictional Dracula films, there have been comparatively few movies about the man who inspired the vampire. The
1975 documentary In Search of Dracula explores the legend of Vlad the Impaler. He is played in the film by Christopher Lee,
known for his numerous portrayals of the fictional Dracula in films ranging from the 1950s to the 1970s.[35]
In 1979, a Romanian film called Vlad epe (sometimes known, in other countries, as The True Story of Vlad the Impaler)
was released, based on his six-year reign and brief return to power in late 1476. The character is portrayed in a mostly
positive perspective though the film also mentions the excesses of his regime and his practice of impalement. The lead
character is played by tefan Sileanu.[36]
Dark Prince: The True Story of Dracula, a film released in 2000, tells the life story of Vlad the Impaler mostly accurately
while ending fictionally with Vlad rising from the grave and gaining eternal worldly life as well as supernatural abilities,
implying that he has now become the fictional Dracula. Vlad is played in the film by Rudolf Martin.
Numerous film adaptations of Bram Stoker's novel Dracula and original works derived from it have incorporated Vlad the
Impaler's history into the fictional Count Dracula's past, depicting them as the same person, including, among others: the
19721979 comic book series The Tomb of Dracula from Marvel Comics, the 1973 film Dracula, starring Jack Palance, and
the 1992 film Bram Stoker's Dracula, starring Gary Oldman as Dracula, apparently making a likeness to Vlad the Impaler.
[edit] Popular culture
Lists of miscellaneous information should be avoided. Please relocate any relevant information into appropriate
sections or articles. (January 2010)
* British alternative rock band Kasabian wrote a song titled "Vlad the Impaler" for their third album West Ryder Pauper
Lunatic Asylum which was released in 2009. It served as the first single and starred Noel Fielding as Vlad in the music video.
* There is a black metal band from France called Vlad Tepes.
* (Manga spoiler warning) In the Japanese manga series "Hellsing", it turns out that the main character "Alucard" is in fact
Vlad III Dracula or Vlad the impaler.
[edit] Notes
1. ^ a b Florescu, Radu R. and McNally, Raymond T. (1989). Dracula: Prince of many faces. Little, Brown and Company.
ISBN 0-316-28656-7.
2. ^ a b Ibid., see caption next to black and white photograph of this painting that appears in the set of illustrations between
pages 74 and 75.
3. ^ Florescu, Radu R. and McNally, Raymond T. (1989). Dracula: Prince of many faces. Little, Brown and Company.
ISBN 0-316-28656-7.
4. ^ Count Dracula's Legend
5. ^ Vlad III (ruler of Walachia)
6. ^ Encyclopedia Britannica
7. ^ http://www.exploringromania.com/young-dracula-childhood
8. ^ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cruel_and_unusual_punishment
9. ^ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Night_Attack#cite_ref-Dracp133_11-2
10. ^ http://www.exploringromania.com/vlad-tepes-dracula
11. ^ a b c DRACULA: between myth and reality. by Adrian Axinte. Stanford University.
12. ^ a b c The Night Attack
13. ^ a b c exploringromania.com
14. ^ Other estimates for the army include 150,000 by Michael Doukas, 250,000 by Laonicus Chalcond.
15. ^ http://www.royalty.nu/Europe/Balkan/Dracula.html
16. ^ http://www.exploringromania.com/vlad-the-impaler
17. ^ http://www.exploringromania.com/vlad-the-impaler
18. ^ Raymond T. McNally, Radu Florescu (1994). In search of Dracula: the history of Dracula and vampires. Houghton
Mifflin Harcourt. ISBN 0395657830.
19. ^ http://www.exploringromania.com/impaler-death
20. ^ Rezachevici, Constantin (2002). The Tomb of Vlad Tepes. The most probable hypothesis.. Journal of Dracula Studies,
Number 4.
21. ^ Treptow, Kurt W. (2000). Vlad III. The Life and Times of the Historical Dracula. The Center for Romanian Studies.
ISBN 973-98392-2-3.
22. ^ http://www.exploringromania.com/vlad-tepes-punishments

23. ^ Florescu, Radu R. (1999). Essays on Romanian History. The Center for Romanian Studies. ISBN 973-9432-03-4.
24. ^ a b Harmening, Dieter (1983). Der Anfang von Dracula. Zur Geschichte von Geschichten.. Knigshausen+Neumann.
ISBN 3-88479-144-3.
25. ^ a b c Andreescu, Stefan (1999). Vlad the Impaler (Dracula). The Romanian Cultural Foundation Publishing House.
ISBN 973-577-197-7.
26. ^ History of Central Europe
27. ^ Miller, Elizabeth. (2003). "Beheim and the Dracula Connection". http://blooferland.com/drc/index.php?
title=Journal_of_Dracula_Studies#Number_5_.282003.29
28. ^ McNally, Raymond. (1982). "Origins of the Slavic Narratives about the Historical Dracula".
29. ^ Andreescu; McNally&Florescu
30. ^ Striedter, Jurij. (1961). "Die Erzhlung vom walachisen Vojevoden Drakula in der russischen und deutschen
berlieferung".
31. ^ Andreescu; McNally & Florescu
32. ^ Perrie, Maureen. (1987). "The Image of Ivan the Terrible in Russian folklore".
33. ^ Andreescu, McNally
34. ^ a b Miller, Elizabeth (2000). Dracula: Sense & Nonsense. Desert Island Books Limited. ISBN 1-874287-24-4.
35. ^ Vem var Dracula? [In Search of Dracula] (1975) The Internet Movie Database
36. ^ Vlad Tepes IMDB page