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Romania,
1456. As the condemned struggles, the executioner pushes the
stake inside his body. With a brutal, but very quick
move, the stake is inserted in such a way as not to kill; it
is designed to punish, invoke terror and much, much later, death.
It has been reported that sometimes it would take several days
for the person to die, with the wooden stake inserted in the
pelvis (or the posterior) area and its top touching the back
of the spinal cord or exiting the mouth. We are in Wallachia
and this is
the punishment thieves, murderers, even adulterous wives, and
any other criminals receive in the land of Vlad Tepes,
a.k.a. Dracula.
Born at the end of 1431 in Sighisoara, the house where Dracula
was born is still standing. In 1431 it was located in a
prosperous neighborhood surrounded by the homes of Saxon and
Magyar merchants and the townhouses of the nobility. Vlad
Tepes III Dracula spent his early years by his father's side,
in the company of his two brothers, Mircea and Radu. After leaving
Transylvania and seizing the Wallachian throne in 1436, their
father began a successful six year reign. Sadly, in 1442, as
the
Turkish forces invaded Transylvania, Vlad II Dracul was exiled
from the throne and country by the superior power Hungary, on
the basis of not siding with them at the time of a previous
crisis. The following year, in 1443, Vlad II changed his position
and
decided to abandon his alliances with the Hungarians and prove
his loyalty to the Turkish Sultan . As a vassal nation, he had
to
pay a tribute, but even more important, send his two younger
sons to Constantinople and Adrianople as official
hostages, for
education in the spirit of loyalty and dedication for the Sultan
(1444-1448). Dracula was about 13 at this time.
Little is known about the early years of Dracula's life. It
is known that he had an elder brother, Mircea, and a younger
brother
named Radu. His early education was left in the hands of his
mother, a Transylvanian noblewoman, and her family. His real
education began in 1436 after his father succeeded in claiming
the Wallachian throne and killing his Danesti rival. His training
was typical of that common to the sons of the nobility throughout
Europe. His first tutor in his apprenticeship to knighthood
was
an elderly boyar who had fought under the banner of Enguerrand
de Courcy at the Battle of Nicolopolis against the Turks.
Dracula learned all the skills of war and peace that were deemed
necessary for a Christian knight.
In 1447, after a period of war with Hungary, Vlad II and Draculas
older brother, Mircea were killed while in battle, murdered,
possibly buried alive, by Hungarian assassins. What followed,
is a period of chaos, and controlled rule of Wallachia by the
Hungarian power, with puppet kings, or various boyars leading
the region. As a counter measure, the Turkish rule freed Dracula,
and gave him an army in order to take control of the now corrupt
Wallachia. Regaining the power, he kept the throne for only
two
months, until he was, just like his father, forced to flee to
Moldavia. Next, history repeats itself, and new events unfold;
Dracula
decided to abandon his ties with the Turks and seeks help from
the Hungarian king. So, in 1456, he successfully took the throne
again, and is crowned Prince of Wallachia. What followed, is
a reign of power, but above all, justice. His leadership, strong,
uncorrupted, creates unprecedented unification in the spirit
of the Romanian people, a force and resistance against the influence
of foreign nations. Until 1462, he ruled with extreme devotion,
instituting his infamous methods of execution and punishment
such as crude torture and more than often impalement. His nickname
is derived from this method of establishing order in the
land. At this time, numerous legends and folk tales appeared,
describing his atrocities, with an estimated 40,000 to 100,000
people executed over his six year reign.
From his capital at Tirgoviste, near today's Bucharest, Dracula
started a campaign to drive the Turkish forces below the
Danube. In his efforts, he reached that zone, only to find an
army three times larger than his waiting to attack. Events that
followed talk about a massive blood-bath, in which about 20,000
Turks were impaled in the name of Dracula and freedom for the
Romanian people. The foreign forces retreated, but not before
reinforcements were send, lead by Draculas younger brother,
now
17, Radu. A series of battles emerged, with no clear winner,
but some of which proved Radus sole allegiance to the
Islam
Nation. The battle grounds extended to the north and finally
reached Draculas castle at Poienari. The Turks seized
the castle
and Draculas wife commits suicide rather than surrender
herself to the invaders. Dracula himself manages to
escape through a supposed secret pathway or corridor, below
the mountains and into Transylvania. There are variations to
the
story, as to the location of the famed suicide, the circumstances,
and battle, and the name of Dracula's wife.
Once in Transylvania, Dracula sought help, once again, from
the Hungarian king, then Matthias Corvinus. Instead of help,
the
king imprisoned Vlad; after at least 4 years in prison, he slowly
recovered and created new alliances through family ties in the
Hungarian aristocracy and the royal family. Here, he remained
for 12 years. In the meantime, in Transylvania, his brother,
now
known as Radu the Handsome, ruled the lands for a brief period
of time, after which he mysteriously died.
Seeing this as an only chance to regain power, Dracula left
Hungary and invaded Wallachia for the third and final time.
He will
rule for a matter of weeks only.
To retaliate, the Turks sent an army which pushed as far as
Bucharest. In battle, while fighting, Dracula is killed, possibly
by one
of his own men. Although this is not a fact, his death in 1476
could have been an act of assassination or a simple accident
as
some of the chronicles of the times say. Decapitated, the body
remained in Romania, while his head was sent to Constantinople
as proof of his death and the ultimate Turkish victory. He was
buried at Snagov, in a small rural monastery situated on a remote
island.
Fast forward in time, to 1897 when Bram Stocker publishes his
novel Dracula at Constable and Sons, a fantastic tale of
vampirism, blood and seduction. With the introduction of this
book, the world meets Count Dracula through innovative narrative
techniques such as Mina's diary or the correspondence between
the two lovers to be. Ever since, this figure achieves cult
status
as one of the most sough after horror character. From movies
(multiple versions, 1931, the sequels,
Francis Ford Coppolas) to merchandise (can you say Count
Chocula cereal?) to TV shows and theater, the figure of Dracula,
although fictional, becomes a household name. But, the biggest
misconception about Dracula is his very nature: the historical
Dracula, Vlad Tepes, did not drink blood, nor did he fly or
transform into a bat, sleep in a coffin, or is repelled by sunlight
and
garlic. These are all elements which acquired a certain secular
cultural value in the light of popular and folk tales or myths.
The real truth, known by many, is that Vlad Tepes was a strong,
powerful, determined leader, a just ruler and forceful king.
In his people's eyes, he was a hero who brought the country
together, while achieving a sense and a reality governed by
order
and peace, even if for a brief period only.
So the myth continues, fueled by new stories and legends, new
media and web coverage of the subject. Our consumerist society
welcomes this new addition to its money-making schemes: from
Halloween costumes, to cereal brands, from trips to the land
of
Dracula in Europe, from copy righted movies, books, action figures,
and characters, the modern world has embraced a shadow, a
figure which is known to most of us from Bram Stoker's psychoanalytic
account of a Transylvanian prince with certain "children
of the night" and love that has no boundaries, between
the real and fantastic world that is. In the end, beyond the
horror, the real
story is even more exiting, more intriguing and more fascinating
than any bloody vampire's tale: it is the story of Vlad Tepes,
the historical figure, the REAL Dracula.
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