Dracula and the Man Behind the Legend
He has been called by many names. He was the Prince, Vlad III; he was the Dark Lord, Vlad Dracula, and the terrible scourge, Vlad the Impaler. He had some rather heady titles considering he was just a minor ruler of a small, remote territory in southeastern Europe called Wallachia. But Vlad Dracula’s land and reign, although small, would prove to be pivotal since his territory had become the stepping stone and beachhead of invasion for the mightiest Islamic force the world has ever known; the Ottoman Empire.
Vlad’s tiny kingdom was one of the last Balkan countries to be conquered by the Ottoman Turks. It had been reduced to a vassal status and forced to pay tribute to the sultan, but it still maintained its autonomy. Stuck between a rock and a hard place, Vlad was born into a world where double-dealing and Machiavellian strategy were second nature. During his early reign, he was fully capable of paying the Ottoman sultan tribute while simultaneously promising the Christian powers of Hungary and Austria that he would soon join them in a holy war against the Ottoman Empire.
As a matter of survival – for himself and his people – Vlad had become quite accustomed to probing others for weaknesses. If he felt that the Ottomans were in a strong position, he would play the loyal subject and allow them to march right through his lands in their quest to subdue Christians. But if he felt that the Christians to the north were getting stronger, he wouldn’t hesitate to side with them and turn on his Turkish masters. In addition to all this political intrigue and maneuvering, Vlad also didn’t hesitate to kill his citizens for the smallest infraction or perceived disrespect. He was a truly startling – and disturbing – figure.
Fast forward to some 400 years later. British author Bram Stoker took the frightful figure of Vlad the Impaler and imbued him with all the supernatural mystique and powers of dark Romanian folklore to create the figure of Count Dracula, which most of us are familiar with from literature, TV, and film. This book seeks to explore every single aspect of this character that did exist historically, and has been alternatively despised, lionized, fabricated, and made fodder for conspiracy theories. We leave no stone unturned as we delve into the depths of everything Dracula!
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