Rhodes, the island of roses is one of the most beautiful islands in the Aegean archipelago. In 1307, during the reign of Grand Master Fulk de Vilaret, the Knights of the Order of St. John conquered Rhodes and made it their seat. It took the Order two whole years to establish its rule on Rhodes (in 1308, Pope Clement V authorized the transfer of Rhodes to the Hospitallers), and in 1310 the Order officially moved its headquarters from Cyprus to Rhodes. Finally, after long wanderings, the knights found their own home. Grand Master Fulk de Villaret became the head of a small sovereign state, which became the easternmost outpost of Christendom. The location of Rhodes was ideally suited to the Order's plans, which were still to keep the Muslim world under constant strain by disrupting its trade. In Rhodes, the internal structure of the Order was finally determined and strengthened, which did not undergo significant changes over the centuries. Subsequently, having moved to Malta, the knights recalled with nostalgia the mild climate and fertile soils of this island, located only 10 miles south of the coast of Asia Minor.
The first concern of the knights was the strengthening of the old Byzantine fortifications of the island and the construction of a hospital. For this purpose, the best specialists were discharged from Europe. Particular attention was paid to the construction of new fortress walls and towers: at the beginning of the 14th century, siege weapons came to replace the ancient catapults. Two years after the knights settled in Rhodes, the Turks attempted to take possession of the island of Amorgos, which lay a hundred miles northwest of Rhodes. Grand Master Fulk de Villaret threw all the available forces of the Order to defeat the Turks. In a naval battle off the coast of Amorgos, the Turks lost their entire fleet. This victory raised the prestige of the Hospitallers in the Mediterranean. Now, smile, skeptics,we will deviate from historical facts and go to the realm of legends … The sweet and unremarkable young man Dieudonne (or Deodat, in our opinion Bogdan) de Gozon from the Provençal langue enters the arena of history. One of the legends with which the history of the Rhodes knights is so rich is associated with his name.
The future emperor was inspired by the "Dragon Slayer". So much so that twenty years later, when the Turks seriously threatened his possessions, Sigismund created the order, uniting the most valiant knights under its banner. The Knightly Order of the Dragon (Societas Draconistrarum) was created in 1408.
The members of the Order of the Dragon were carefully selected from among the representatives of the ruling dynasties of Europe. The symbol was the dragon of St. George, coiled into a ring, with an open mouth, spread out paws, raised wings with a tail entwined around the neck and a red cross on a silver field between the neck and tail. The Knights of the Order were required to carry the badge of the Order with them at all times, possibly as a pendant around their necks, and were often buried with it. The Order's mottos were “O quam misericors est Deus” (“Oh, how merciful the Lord is”) or “Justus et paciens” (“Justifiably and peacefully”). The order remained strong until Sigismund's death in 1437. Without a strong sponsor, the Order quickly lost influence and prestige. However, as early as 1431, Sigismund expanded the Order, accepting new members, in particular, the ruler of Wallachia, Vlad II Dracula (1390-1447) and a number of noble Hungarian aristocrats.
It is interesting that the emblem of the Order then migrated to the coats of arms of the Hungarian noble families, for example, Bathory and Rakosi. Vlad II also used this emblem - on his personal necklace of six coins, as well as in his personal coat of arms and seal, he was so carried away by the ideas of the order brotherhood that he added the name of the Dragon to the family name, calling himself Vlad Dragon or - in the local dialect - Vlad Dracul … Vlad II Dracul was actually the father of the notorious warrior, who, however, was also called Vlad Dracula. Father, by the way, was a zealous follower of the order. Before curiosities. For example, he commanded elements of order symbols to be minted on the coins of his dwarf, but state. Such an image, of course, was considered sacred, and … counterfeiters were punished with triple cruelty. However, historically
Promotional video:
Ryu entered not a simple knight of the Order of the Dragon, but his son, who took the name along with the throne and the vows of the Order of the Dragon.
Cruelty, a sea of shed blood. The chroniclers point out directly that Vlad Dracula is a warlock. But why are the wise chroniclers silent that for several decades in a row the bloody tyrant alone - mind you - alone, with a handful of loyal knights, opposed the Porte, blocking Islam's path to the west.
Yes, Vlad Dracula was hard-hearted, and, presumably, without any measure. It's reprehensible. Although in no way can one discount the mores and customs of that era. Whatever the unrestrained Dragon Knight did, everything fit into the then "international legal norms". However, his cruelty, more likely, was his tool than fun. Among others like himself, the Dragon stood out precisely for the thoroughness of the reprisal. It sounds ominous. But this paralyzed the will of the superior enemy and gave victory. Intimidation was the knight's main weapon. May people forgive his sinful soul. Perhaps the time will come, and she will be rewarded according to her merits. Not now. However, it is in connection with the military merits of Vlad the Dragon that it will be legitimate to talk about the continuity of the two orders.
Many will ask why such a detailed excursion into history was actually needed. Contemporaries pretty much got it wrong with the translation of the name Dracula, because in the local dialect the devil and dragon are denoted by the same word. And the knight of the Dragon became for many a knight of the Devil. Therefore, I wanted to preface the story about this character with this essay, without him the story of the ruler of the Wallachian Vlad III Dracula, the successor to the Order of the Dragon, seems to me a little incomplete, but this is just my opinion.
The personality of Vlad the Dragon is so interesting and far from unambiguous in itself that it should be given a separate article.