Deadliest Warrior: Vlad Tepes v. Dracula

Tomorrow evening (Friday), we head off on a group adventure to city of Brasov, in southern Transylvania. From there, on Saturday, we visit both Bran Castle (Transylvania's 'Castle Dracula'; touristy and kitschy and hilarious) and Poenari Fortress, Vlad the Impaler's real castle.

I am so ready for this weekend to be all vampires, all the time. 

One of my favorite things about being in Transylvania with a whole bunch of vampire mythos geeks and history buffs is comparing/contrasting the real history with the myths. Vlad Tepes is a fascinating character, and once you start delving into his reality, it's obvious why he's used in so many different ways. He cuts a compelling figure. 

Similarly, comparing vampire myths cross-culturally, and with the definitive Dracula work, and the deviations in fiction, is a really good time. You're dealing not only with cultural differences on what 'vampirism' is (Greek vampires vs. classic Eastern/Central European vampires vs. stories in Native American cultures like the Iroquois Vampire Skeleton), but also what Stoker decided to set down (his influences are many and varied, pulling from lots of sources and his own imagination) and how popular culture and fiction writers have played with that and weaved their own mythos. It's so much fun. 

Some backstory on Vlad the Impaler from Andre's lecture that first day/The Historian/wikipedia: 

• His father (Dracul, meaning Dragon; named for his policies and his inclusion into a society called The Order of the Dragon) made many enemies, so when he was younger, Vlad was kidnapped and held hostage in Istanbul for many years.
• When he finally returned to Transylvania, he was well-educated, very smart, and very shrewd when it came to military tactics. (Some natural talent combined with observing the Turks, no doubt.)
• As it was, the man was very kind to his peasants and they loved him, would die for him; his lords and nobles, not so much. He was hard on them, didn't favor the aristocracy system, and that made them rather grumpy. 
• Vlad made his fair share of enemies, not least of all, his lords.
• Interesting point: while Vlad was in command, the Ottoman Empire (the Turks) never set foot in Transylvania. The soldiers did (not for very long; they were defeated rather quickly, though it takes a while to die when you're impaled), but there was never a Turkish foothold in the region. (According to Andre; have not fact-checked this, but he is a Romanian scholar who has worked in this region for a very long time)
• One of his most persistent antagonists (previously an ally) was Matthias Corvinus, the famous king of Hungary. 
• Now, this is interesting, coming from Budapest where Corvinus is hailed, to a lecture where he's an impotent coward--such an interesting transition. History, man. One man's hero is another story's black-hatted villain. The truth exists somewhere in between. Or, as John Sheridan says, "Understanding is a three-edged sword: your side, their side, and the truth." 
• The legends of Vlad's death are where much of the vampire myth-research can be seen (though Andre did give us some funny anecdotes that give some evidence) 
• For example, the best one we heard, was: Vlad did not allow weapons in his presence, but a Dominican monk (an order who vehemently opposed Vlad) was allowed to carry a large wooden cross (being a monk). While in a meeting with Vlad, the monk broke the wooden cross to provide a pointed tip and plunged it into Vlad's heart, killing him and starting a whole avalanche of vampire myth questions.
• Andre's closing statement gave us one of my favorite tidbits about Vlad's life and legacy: apparently there are still monks of a religious order set outside his tomb (at Snagov, potentially), praying for his return, to fix Romania.
• Also, I just want to call attention to this very interesting painting from 1463 placing Vlad as Pontius Pilate judging Jesus Christ. Man, you could write a very long, very involved article on that. Wow. 
• And finally, a quote that I think sums it all up very well (found on wikipedia, but very interesting): 

And he hated evil in his country so much that, if anyone committed some harm, theft or robbery or a lye or an injustice, none of those remained alive. Even if he was a great boyar or a priest or a monk or an ordinary man, or even if he had a great fortune, he couldn't pay himself from death.

Whatever you think of Vlad the Impaler, I will say this: he may have been cruel, but he was trying to do right by his people, and he was very effective at it. I will have more information, plus pictures and excited fangirling.