Dracula - Vlad Tepes

          Vlad Tepes was born in 1431 in Sighisoara. His father, Vlad Dracul, at that time was governor of Transylvania. Tepes was the grandson of another great Roman prince: Mircea the Elder (1386-1418).
          In the winter of 1436-1437, Vlad Dracul became prince of Wallachia and takes up residence in Targoviste, the capital of the principality. Tepes followed his father and lived six years at the princely court. In 1442, for political reasons, Vlad and his younger brother Radu were taken hostage by the Sultan Murad II and remained in Turkey until 1448 and 1462 respectively. Released after the assassination of his father by Vladislav II, Vlad Tepes learn about the death of his older brother Mircea, who had been tortured and buried alive by the boyars of Targoviste.
          At 17 years old, Vlad Tepes Dracula, supported by the Turks try to conquer the throne of Wallachia, but  another willing, Vladislav II, defeats him. In 1456, Tepes makes a new attempt, this time successful, and now begins his reign (six years) in which he committed many bloody deeds which have brought controversial reputation. His first major act of revenge was to kill the murderers of his father. So, in 1459 he arrested all the boyar families who participated in the assassination - some of them were impaled, while others forced to walk from the capital (Targoviste) to Poenari, where they built a fortress on the ruins of another old outpost above the Arges River. Since most noblemen died in these circumstances, Tepes has created a new group of nobles.
          Vlad Tepes became very popular because of his brutal punishment techniques: wicked were skinned, boiled, decapitated, blinded, hanged, burned, roasted, buried alive or impaled - the latter being the method from which the nickname Tepes.(romanian "teapa" means spike).

          In early 1462, Vlad launched a campaign against the Turks along the Danube, in 1462 managed to get only  victories and that terrify the Turks. To get revenge, Sultan Mehmet decided to invade Wallachia and it transform into a Turkish province. He entered Wallachia with an army three times larger than Tepes's. In these circumstances, and without allies, Vlad was forced to withdraw from Targoviste. Mehmed left the second part of the battle to Vlad's younger brother Radu, the Turkish favorite for the Wallachian throne. It followed Tepes to the castle Poenari , the Arges River. According to legend, this is where Vlad's wife, for not being captured by the Turks, committed suicide by  jumping of a cliff. Vlad, in turn, managed to escape using a secret passageway in the mountain. Helped by some peasants, he took refuge in the village Arefu and came here in Transylvania where he met the king of Hungary, Matthias Corvinus. Insted of helping him, Corvinus imprisoned Tepes at Visegrad. Vlad Tepes stayed for twelve years in Hungary, while his brother Radu ruled Wallachia as a puppet of the Turks. After the first four years, Tepes was allowed to move into a house. To earn the goodwill of the royal family, he married the king's sister (according to some sources). He became a Catholic, which would delight the Catholic Hungarians.
           In 1476 Tepes came  in Wallachia with with help from Moldova and Transylvania. This third reign has lasted several months. Vlad was slain on the battlefield, in a new battle with the Turks. He was beheaded and his head was taken to Constantinople, as a proof of his death. Although there is clear evidence, it seems that Tepes's body was buried at Snagov Monastery near Bucharest.