Dracula's Castle is located in the northwest of Romania. Transylvania has long been considered the land of vampires and all thanks to the formidable and cruel Count Dracula.
Since antiquity, some legends about blood-sucking monsters have reached us. The character of the bloodthirsty count appeared much later. It all began at the end of the 19th century, when the Irish writer Bram Stoker published his famous book Dracula. In this work, Count Dracula first appears, which later becomes the most popular cinematic and literary image of the vampire.
The very name "Dracula" was borrowed from a real person - Vlad III Dracula (Vlad the Impaler), known for his abnormal bloodthirstiness as the ruler of medieval Wallachia (the region of today's Romania). While working on the novel, Bram Stoker thoroughly studied the history and folklore of Transylvania, and also constantly borrowed from the library a book about the rulers of Wallachia and Moldavia. The writer collected data on Vlad Dracula.
In Stoker's book, Count Dracula lived in a castle near Borgo Gorge in Transylvania. The residence of the real person, Vlad Tepes, who became the prototype of the Count, was in Targovishte, the capital of Wallachia. Why did the book vampire live in Transylvania?
It is quite possible that Stoker, in one of the books he studied, came across a legend that Vlad Tepes often spent the night in Bran Castle during his campaigns, and the area around him was a favorite hunting ground for Lord Dracula. At the same time, Bran Castle is located just in Transylvania, not far from the gorge … Only this gorge has a different name than the fictional Borgo.
That is why Bran Castle is now called the Castle of Dracula, although this building never actually belonged to the infamous Vlad the Impaler. The castle received this name only in the XX century, after the phenomenal success of "Dracula", when fans of vampire stories went in search of the legendary Castle and came to the conclusion that Bran Castle is the prototype of the ominous monster's refuge …
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Vlad III received the nickname Tepes (Impaler) for his special cruelty in dealing with his subjects and enemies - Tepes impaled the guilty. The nickname Dracul (translated as “dragon”) was inherited by Vlad from his father Vlad II, who was a member of the elite knightly order of the Dragon.
The count's cruelty was his separate feature and knew no boundaries. He killed innocents for fun, took baths of blood and ate food in the immediate vicinity of corpses suspended from stakes.
Once the tyrant ordered his guards to nail the caps of foreign ambassadors to their heads, who refused to take them off when they entered the ruler. The fight against poverty was also notable for its terrifying originality - one day he gathered the beggars in one room, set the tables, fed and then burned everyone. The people lived in fear, but Vlad the Impaler eradicated theft and other crimes. To demonstrate this achievement, a golden drinking bowl was placed near the well in the central metropolitan square. Anyone could use it, no one guarded the cup, but no one dared to steal it for many years. Everyone knew that the reprisal would be severe. The gold bowl that stood in the central square was not stolen even 25 years after the death of Vlad III.
Some considered him an insane tyrant, others said that the count was a warlock and made a deal with the dark forces.
In a series of constant wars and palace coups, Count Dracula was killed. After the death of Vlad Tepes, a legend appeared among the people that he turned into a vampire. There were reasons for that - the countless victims of the monster often cursed their tormentor before dying, in addition, Vlad changed his faith. This, according to the folklore beliefs of the peoples of the Carpathians, is quite enough for the posthumous transformation into a vampire. Moreover, according to another legend, Dracula's body disappeared from the graves shortly after the funeral.
Bram Stoker, while working on his creation, probably learned about these legends, and that is why he named his hero Dracula. In addition, Vlad III's nickname “Dracula” can be translated not only as “dragon”, but also as “devil”.
All assumptions indicate that Bran Castle was the abode of Dracula, although there is no direct evidence of this. Now the building is a functioning museum. But if the insidious count lived here, then the whole place is saturated with pain and suffering of unfortunate victims and carries a negative aura.
Dracula's castle and his grave became a place of pilgrimage for numerous tourists, but the burial place, soon after the start of the influx of those eager to approach the most important "vampire", it was decided to change. No one to this day knows where the remains of Vlad Tepes are buried and whether they even exist.
If you visit Bran Castle don't forget:
1. Buy traditional Transylvanian ceramics, masks and wooden crafts - there are many such souvenirs sold in the shops near the castle. It's not just a souvenir - it's Bran's trademark.
2. Trying local cheeses is another attraction of Romania. The cheeses are delicious enough to make you dizzy. Some varieties are “packed” in bark.
3. Purchase something vampire - even if the legends about Count Dracula are mostly fiction, gloomy masks, false jaws, artificial blood and other attributes of blood lovers are sold in Bran.
4. Lie down or sit in a coffin - not necessarily in your own, you can use the coffins in bars. In some cafes, the benches are made in the form of coffins. You sit in your crypt and drink beer.
You can visit Bran even without a frenzied faith in vampires. Still, the castle is a valuable monument of Romanian medieval art. Looking at the walls towering on the mountain, one can easily imagine how the knights could storm them - arrows flew at them, resin and hot water poured. Residents defended their city, defended their homes - a common but exciting story of the European Middle Ages.
How to get to Dracula's castle: take a train from Bucharest to Brasov (188 kilometers), then take a bus to Bran every half an hour. Be careful - you do not need to get off at Bran station, but go further to the castle itself. Travel time is 30 minutes.