Vlad III, Prince of Wallachia (*presumably in Sighisoara in 1431, † 1476/77 near Bukarest)
Today, we’re going to make a trip into the life of Vlad III. Draculea, who was also known as “the Impaler”. I’m going to explain the reason why he was called this way later. You guys probably know him under the name Dracula. This ruler of Siebenbürgen and the Wallachia was the inspiration for Bram Stoker’s vampire novel “Dracula”. Why? Simply because Vlad was a cold-hearted and gruesome man towards his enemies. He did not spare anyone and embodied some kind of a national hero and protector of South Europe, which used to be terrified by a constant war against the Othman Empire.
Now, let us quickly get to his name. Draculea can be interpreted as the “son of the dragon” or even as “son of the devil”, and his byname “Tepes” means “the Impaler” and characterizes Vlad’s favorite manner to punish his enemies. Let us come to that soon.
Vlad was the second one of three brothers, born in the principality of the Wallachia, which used to be ruled by the Otham Empire. In order to control the principality, the Turks took Vlad and his younger brother as hostages. Vlad was treated badly, which also formed his character and increased his hatred against the Ottomans. His half-brother Radu was raised as kind of a foster-son of the sultan; and so the young prince became even more embittered. He even disliked his father as he was the one who used him as a dead pledge against the Turks even though he swore resistence against the invasores as a member of the Orden of Dragon.
When the Boyars, led by Vlad’s father, rebelled against the Turks, Vlad II was murdered. According to hints, the assassination was ordered by a Hungarian ruler, because also Hungary did not want to lose their authority over the Walllachia. His older brother was also murdered because of a politic assassination when some rulers put up a fight. He was blended with a red-hot iron bar and buried alive…
Then, the Turks invaded the Wallachia and used Vlad III, whom they thought to be broken, as a puppet ruler. However, Vlad III was no puppet at all; and so he had to flee to Moldavia and later on to Hungary because of his resistance. From there, he planned his revenge which was known to be horrible.
When he forced Hungary to free the Wallachia from the Turks, he commanded his own army. And he was a masterful strategist. After he first freed the Wallachia and became the ruler again, he led the crusade against the Ottomans in Europe. He ambushed, burned down camps, outmaneuvered them and showed them the meaning of fear. He killed dominating armies without caring for his own men. He was a cold, brillant and gruesome ruler. Nevertheless, his men followed him without any doubts.
Even though he was betrayed and had to go into exile, he came back to the top of his army to accede to the throne. His warfare did not become more human at all, but his hatred against the invasores and treaters became even bigger.
Soon, only his name was enough to spread fear among his enemies – and there were good reasons for it…
Vlad the Impalor
Vlad learned impaling during his time as a hostage at the Ottomans’. It was used as a gruesome punishment for criminals. The convict was fettered at the peak of a sharpened stake and the rest was left to gravity. This kind of execution could take hours our even days. After that the dead body was left to the crows. Contemporary witnesses reported on clouds of crows which darkened the sun over the fields of stakes Vlad had left behind.
Vlad adopted this punishment and used it for the Turks who used to occupy his homecountry. His thirst for revenge was enormous. Thousands of prisoners were executed this way after the crusades. Around 100,000 victims were counted. But not only stakes were used. Also being cooking alive, flaying and skinning, mutilation and breaking bones with the wheel were well-known methods. What can be supposed as very morbid is the fact that he was eating his meals while being entertained by the executions.
Moreover, he also fought actively in the battles. His hatred made him a beast of the fights. However, he finally died during his last battle against intern enemies. With his death also the dream of an independent South East Europe died. And it could not be unified until today. For many people he is still a hero. Under his guidance the Turks could at least be dispersed from Europe for a short period. He unified Serbs, Moldavians, Hungarians, Transilvania, the Wallachia and other nations in his armies.
Copyright and Source: http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vlad_III._Dr%C4%83culea, http://www.welt.de/kultur/history/article107302337/Der-echte-Dracula-war-ein-sadistischer-Tyrann, html and http://moviepilot.com/posts/2014/06/28/universal-icons-part-1-dracula-1614798#!bl40VQ
