Vlad versus Dracula
- Transylvania, November 8, 1431. Vlad Draculea was born, which would later become Prince Vlad III of Wallachia and the origin of the myth of the most famous bloodthirsty vampire. At a very young age, Vlad was handed over by his father to the Ottomans. When the Ottomans conquered Wallachia, he was appointed Prince, but in that troubled territory he did not remain in office for a year.
Vlad printzeaVlad printzea
The insults suffered in the hands of the Turks for years did not, however, make Vlad their doll, and the young man demonstrated his skill in political manoeuvres, turning his back on the Ottomans and regaining the throne of Wallachia with the help of their Hungarian enemies. In 1459 he refused to pay the taxes demanded by the Ottoman Empire. Immediately, Mehmed II began to prepare an exemplary punishment for the Valakian Sultans.
In 1462 the Ottomans formed a magnificent army, in number three times that of Vlad's army and much better in equipment. The capital of Targoviste was taken immediately after entering Wallachia. But Vlad didn’t grow up in vain among his enemies, he knew their habits and fears perfectly. On the one hand he attacked them in the form of guerrillas, in small groups and at night; immediately legends about the relationship between the prince and the darkness spread among his enemies. On the other hand, the killing of enemies by entering the post was common at that time. But Vlad took this habit to the extreme. When Mehmed II arrived in Targovist, he saw the surrounding hills standing and covered with corpses. According to the Ottoman chronicles, there were between 15,000 and 20,000 of them rotting inside the vault. The Sultan decided to return to Constantinople. In addition, Vlad used to make geometric figures with poles, increasing the incidence of cruel propaganda. The illustrations and writings of the time represented Vlad enjoying the show. And finally, he won that conflict psychologically.
Valakia was in the midst of clashes between the Ottomans and the Hungarians, and Vlad used an extreme strategy to maintain the sovereignty of the kingdom. It also served to reduce internal conflicts; the opposition of the boyars – the local enemy aristocrats – vanished in the vault. His hatred for Saxon merchants and immigrants was also satisfied by the poles.
I’m sure this had an impact centuries later when the British Bram Stoker picked up the myth of Count Dracula in a novel in 1897. He portrayed Vlad as a vampire in search of blood, and then it was up to Hollywood to further distort the historical image. It is only in present-day Romania that the political image of the prince is maintained; in 1976, the Communist government of Ceaucescu declared him a Hero of the Nation on the fifth centenary of his death.
In 1462 the Ottomans formed a magnificent army, in number three times that of Vlad's army and much better in equipment. The capital of Targoviste was taken immediately after entering Wallachia. But Vlad didn’t grow up in vain among his enemies, he knew their habits and fears perfectly. On the one hand he attacked them in the form of guerrillas, in small groups and at night; immediately legends about the relationship between the prince and the darkness spread among his enemies. On the other hand, the killing of enemies by entering the post was common at that time. But Vlad took this habit to the extreme. When Mehmed II arrived in Targovist, he saw the surrounding hills standing and covered with corpses. According to the Ottoman chronicles, there were between 15,000 and 20,000 of them rotting inside the vault. The Sultan decided to return to Constantinople. In addition, Vlad used to make geometric figures with poles, increasing the incidence of cruel propaganda. The illustrations and writings of the time represented Vlad enjoying the show. And finally, he won that conflict psychologically.
Valakia was in the midst of clashes between the Ottomans and the Hungarians, and Vlad used an extreme strategy to maintain the sovereignty of the kingdom. It also served to reduce internal conflicts; the opposition of the boyars – the local enemy aristocrats – vanished in the vault. His hatred for Saxon merchants and immigrants was also satisfied by the poles.
I’m sure this had an impact centuries later when the British Bram Stoker picked up the myth of Count Dracula in a novel in 1897. He portrayed Vlad as a vampire in search of blood, and then it was up to Hollywood to further distort the historical image. It is only in present-day Romania that the political image of the prince is maintained; in 1976, the Communist government of Ceaucescu declared him a Hero of the Nation on the fifth centenary of his death.