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Undoubtedly, we have all heard legends about vampires. These undead creatures were born to live by sucking the blood of innocent humans. But where did these monsters originate? The name Dracula comes from Vlad III of fifteenth century Romania (Porter). Contrary to popular opinion though, Dracula was not a vampire, but rather one of the greatest rulers that had every reigned over Romania.
Leblanc states, "Vlad III was born in November or December 1431 in the fortress of Sighisoara, Romania." His father, Vlad II, belonged to the Order of the Devil which was established to fight off the invading Turks that wished to conquer Romania. He took the name "Dracula" which means devil in the Romanian language and his son, Vlad III, was given the name "Dracula" meaning son of the devil (Porter). Dracula was raised by his mother while his father was in exile. When Vlad II regained the throne in 1436, Dracula was taken in by his father and taught to live as a nobleman (Leblanc). Porter says, "Dracula learned all the skills of war and peace that were deemed necessary for a Christian knight. " At the age of sixteen Dracula's father and older brother were assassinated by the Turks. The Turks then supported Dracula's attempt to be the next king.
With Turkish assistance Vlad III managed to briefly seize his fathers throne but lost it to the Hungarians two months later (Porter). In 1456, he ruled over the throne of Wallachia which was southern Romania. That began his longest reign as king which was for the next six years (Leblanc). During this time period Vlad III performed some of the worst cruelties giving him the reputation he is renowned for today.
He was given the name "Tepes" which, in Romanian, means impaler (Florescu and McNally). Florescu and McNally state, "Vlad was so-named because of his penchant for impalement as a means of punishing his enemies. " A person was impaled by having a large pointed stake thrust between his buttocks and out of his mouth. He was then left to die as the weight of his body ever-so slowly pushed him down the staff (Porter). Vlad Tepes would routinely have a table set in front of his victims and would eat a meal amidst the horrid sounds of the dying (Florescu and McNally).
Dracula also implemented other means of torturing his victims. The list includes nails in the head, cutting off of limbs, noses, and ears, blinding, skinning, and burying alive (Leblanc). Tepes victims include women, children, lords, and merchants. Many of his servants believed that he derived a perverted pleasure from these atrocities (Porter). Despite that Vlad III is better known for his acts of inhumanity, he is also remembered as being respected by his subjects because of his fierce hatred of the Turks.
He was highly praised as a warrior and a harsh ruler who had no toleration for crime (Florescu and McNally). Among the Romanian people Dracula is remembered as a just ruler who defended his people from foreigners. He was also remembered as a champion of the common man against the oppression of the lords (Porter). In 1462, Dracula was dethroned by the Turks and held in captivity for four years.
Even in captivity he often captured mice and impaled them on small spears (Porter). In 1476, he had the support of enough men to recapture his crown. He did so but only for a few short weeks (Leblanc). He was assassinated near the town of Bucharest at the hands of one of his own men who was actually a Turkish spy (Florescu and McNally). Vlad III was decapitated and his head was sent to Constantinople where it was displayed on a stake proving that he was dead (Porter). Dracula remains known to us as a vampire even though that myth has long been disprove.
He was actually a great prince and a warrior who fought for his people no matter what the odds. He believed in a crime-free state where people should work hard and be rewarded for it. By all means he truly is a man to remember. Bibliography: web
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