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Sabinae
10-28-2009, 07:32 AM
Known as the historical model of Count Dracula, Vlad the Impaler is considered a national hero in his native country - Romania. Vlad III Dracula is a Romanian national symbol of fight for independence against ottomans.

Vlad Tepes (spelled Tepes, pronounced tse-pesh) is a fifteenth century voivode or prince of Wallachia of the princely House of Basarab. Wallachia is a province of Romania bordered to the north by Transylvania and Moldavia, to the east by the Black Sea and to the south by Bulgaria.

Vlad the Impaler was born in November or December 1431, in the fortress of Sighisoara, Romania. His father, Vlad Dracul, at that time appointed military governor of Transylvania by the emperor Sigismund, had been inducted into the Order of the Dragon about one year before. The order was a semimilitary and religious society, originally created in 1387 by the Holy Roman Emperor and his second wife, Barbara Cilli.

Its emblem was a dragon, wings extended, hanging on a cross. The dragon was the symbol of the devil and consequently and alternate meaning of 'drac' (the devil) was dragon. The main goals of such a secret fraternal order of knights was mainly to protect the interests of Catholicism, and to crusade against the Turks. This order provides an explanation for the name "Dracula;" "Dracul," in Romanian language, means "Dragon", and the boyars of Romania, who knew of Vlad the Impaler' father induction into the Order of the Dragon, decided to call him "Dracul." "Dracula," a diminutive which means "the son of Dracul," was a surname to be used ultimately by Vlad the Impaler.

The first thing he had done as the prince of Wallachia was trying to seek revenge for his father and his brother deaths. On Easter Sunday of what we believe to be 1459, he arrested all the boyar families who had participated to the princely feast. He impaled the older ones on stakes while forcing the others to march from the capital to the town of Poenari. This fifty-mile trek was quite grueling, and those who survived were not permitted to rest until they reached destination. Vlad the Impaler then ordered them to build him a fortress on the ruins of an older outpost overlooking the Arges river. Many died in the process, and Dracula therefore succeeded in creating a new nobility and obtaining a fortress for future emergencies. What is left today of the building is identified as Castle Dracula.

[...]
On the other hand, he made donations to various churches and monasteries, one such place being the monastary at Lake Snagov where he is supposed to have been buried, he tried to reduce the economic role of the nobility and increase the rights of peasantry, reinforced some castles, like the one at Poienari, where he also had a personal house built nearby.

Romanian attitudes

Romanian folklore and poetry, on the other hand, paints Vlad Ţepeş as a hero. His favorite weapon being the stake, coupled with his reputation in his native country as a man who stood up to both foreign and domestic enemies, gives him the virtual opposite symbolism of Stoker's vampire. In Romania, he is considered one of the greatest leaders in the country's history, and was voted one of "100 Greatest Romanians" in the "Mari Români" television series aired in 2006.

A contemporary portrait of Vlad III, rediscovered by Romanian historians in the late 19th century, had been featured in the gallery of horrors at Innsbruck's Ambras Castle. However, this original has been lost to history, but a larger copy, painted anonymously in the latter half of the sixteenth century, now hangs in the same gallery[1][2]. This copy, unlike the all the cryptoportraits contemporary with Vlad III, seems to have given him a Hapsburg lip, although he was not a member of the Hapsburg lineage.

His image in modern Romanian culture has been established in reaction to foreign perceptions: while Stoker's book did a lot to generate outrage with nationalists, it is the last part of a rather popular previous poem by Mihai Eminescu, "Scrisoarea a III-a", that helped turn Vlad's image into modern legend, by having him stand as a figure to contrast with presumed social decay under the Phanariotes and the political scene of the 19th century (even suggesting that Vlad's violent methods be applied as a cure). This judgment was in tune with the ideology of the inward-looking regime of Nicolae Ceauşescu, although the identification did little justice to Eminescu's personal beliefs.

All accounts of his life describe him as ruthless, but only the ones originating from his Saxon detractors paint him as sadistic or insane. These pamphlets continued to be published long after his death, though usually for lurid entertainment rather than propaganda purposes. It has largely been forgotten until recently that his tenacious efforts against the Ottoman Empire won him many staunch supporters in his lifetime, not just in modern day Romania but in the Kingdom of Hungary, Poland, the Republic of Venice, and even the Holy See, not to take into account Balkan countries. A Hungarian court chronicler reported that King Matthias "had acted in opposition to general opinion" in Hungary when he had Dracula imprisoned, and this played a considerable part in Matthias reversing his unpopular decision. During his time as a "distinguished prisoner" before being fully pardoned and allowed to reconquer Wallachia, Vlad was hailed as a Christian hero by visitors from all over Europe.

Full articles here:
http://www.draculas.info/vlad_iii_dracula/

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vlad_III_the_Impaler

http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_wamXBBfvp90/SM82rDlNfGI/AAAAAAAAAEg/_0-DneZbCp0/s320/vlad_the_impaler_2.jpg
monastery of Snagov-The Impaler's grave
http://www.draculas.info/_img/gallery/monastery_of_snagov_vlad_the_impaler_grave_12.jpg

Dracula's Castle-Poienari
http://www.draculas.info/_img/gallery/dracula_castle_poienari_109.jpg

Catacombs in Bran Castle(I've been trhough here:P)
http://www.draculas.info/_img/gallery/castle_bran_catacombs_18.jpg

Germanic Illustration on Vlad the Impaler:
http://www.draculas.info/_img/gallery/vlad_the_impaler_ilustration_germanic__3_small.jpg

Wölfin
10-28-2009, 07:41 AM
Very interesting, and educative... you always hear about the man and his... grisly habits :P But very little about his other deeds.

Comte Arnau
10-28-2009, 09:24 AM
What is your personal opinion, Sabinae, as a Romanian? Is it true that it is regarded as a national hero there?

Arrow Cross
10-28-2009, 10:48 AM
Ah yes, ole Vlad was a very useful Turk-deflector for our great King Matthias, and he certainly knew how to treat those moon-worshippers. The last glorious days of Central- Eastern Europe. :vampire

Loddfafner
10-28-2009, 01:00 PM
I get the impression that Romanians tend to be as sick of Dracula as residents of Kansas are of the Wizard of Oz as all that outsiders ever think of.

Baron Samedi
10-28-2009, 01:05 PM
All heill Vlad Dracul!

<<<< big fan.

Beorn
10-28-2009, 02:32 PM
Dracula was Irish.

I used to love reading about Vlad Tepes as a child. It was his legend and Werewolves which sparked my horror imagination.

Baron Samedi
10-28-2009, 02:57 PM
Anyone here ever read Carmilla?

Svarog
10-28-2009, 03:08 PM
Hail Vlad!

Cato
10-28-2009, 03:20 PM
A slayer of dirty Turks whose real life is much more interesting than Stoker's Victorian-era novel.

Guapo
10-28-2009, 03:57 PM
A real ladie's man.

Arrow Cross
10-28-2009, 05:48 PM
p-mNBbgQ2-s

Arrow Cross
10-28-2009, 05:54 PM
And in a similar spirituality... :p

http://www.cossacks.ca/images/Letter.gif

Sabinae
10-28-2009, 07:43 PM
Vlad Tepes is a national hero, he is one of the protectors of our land, people and tradition. Apart from that, many people respected him because he was very strict on rules and honesty. He punished the liars, cheaters, thieves....in his own original ways(:D) setting fear amongst others and putting off other criminals. He was cruel, but he made himself respected, and he was never dishonest.

Romanians arent sick of being known for Dracula and the legend, as they are part of our tradition... It is true though, that we might have many glorious historical facts to narrate about, and that we'd also like to share those facts. But, because of the wild imagination making Dracula a fantastic character, his impact on people is greater. :)

Loddfafner
10-28-2009, 09:46 PM
In the Brukenthal museum in Sibiu/Hermannstadt, there is a Medieval painting of Jesus tangled up in a gigantic crown of thorns. A body is gruesomely impaled on each of those thorns. Perhaps it was some local artist's homage to Vlad. Unfortunately the museum has an especially strict policy against photography but did not sell cards of the paintings I would like to have had images of, and a gaggle of museum guards followed me from room to room, having nothing else to do.

Wait: it is now on the web (http://www.brukenthalmuseum.ro/europeana_en/etajI/02.htm)! Look for the row of paintings towards the bottom of the screen, and click on the one furthest to the left.

Stegura
10-29-2009, 05:02 AM
Vlad the Impaler is one of Europe's greatest heroes of the struggle against Islamic invaders!

:thumbs up

http://towerweb.net/vampires/pics/VladTepes04.jpg

Like Charles Martel, King Fernidad and Isabella, Janos Hunyadi, John Sobieski, Constantine XI, and many others who fought against Islamic expansion into Europe, they should not just be viewed as "national" heroes, they should viewed as European heroes!

Zyklop
10-29-2009, 07:43 AM
Vlad the Impaler is one of Europe's greatest heroes of the struggle against Islamic invaders!

:thumbs up

http://towerweb.net/vampires/pics/VladTepes04.jpg


The text above tells about him barbecuing babys and forcing their mothers to eat them. ;)

Absinthe
10-29-2009, 07:55 AM
The text above tells about him barbecuing babys and forcing their mothers to eat them. ;)
Ditto....if he did all those things they accuse him of, then he's hardly a hero in my eyes...

A sociopathic serial killer with extreme sadistic tendencies - I don't care if it was the "dirty Turks" that he killed or "the Islamic threat" that he fought against...

Having your dinner in front of the sight of thousands of people being impaled alive? Turks or not, you gotta be sick to consider such an act "heroic"...

Not saying that brutal war tactics did not exist in the past...but this is pure sadism and torture "just for the hell of it" - literally. :....

Arrow Cross
10-29-2009, 10:35 AM
Ditto....if he did all those things they accuse him of, then he's hardly a hero in my eyes...

A sociopathic serial killer with extreme sadistic tendencies - I don't care if it was the "dirty Turks" that he killed or "the Islamic threat" that he fought against...

Having your dinner in front of the sight of thousands of people being impaled alive? Turks or not, you gotta be sick to consider such an act "heroic"...

Not saying that brutal war tactics did not exist in the past...but this is pure sadism and torture "just for the hell of it" - literally. :....
First of all, these tall tales became part of his legend... cult, if you prefer, and you know how Medieval tales travelled around... everyone on the receiving end added his own little twist and sensation to make it even more of a tale! :p
That's how he became the vampire Dracula.

Second of all, even if it's all true like the Scriptura, it doesn't really make him stand out by the age's standards, the peoples of the East have suffered under the Tatar and the Turk for many centuries by then, who often employed such brutal and cruel methods on an even larger scale.

Sabinae
10-29-2009, 11:43 PM
Ditto....if he did all those things they accuse him of, then he's hardly a hero in my eyes...

A sociopathic serial killer with extreme sadistic tendencies - I don't care if it was the "dirty Turks" that he killed or "the Islamic threat" that he fought against...

Having your dinner in front of the sight of thousands of people being impaled alive? Turks or not, you gotta be sick to consider such an act "heroic"...

Not saying that brutal war tactics did not exist in the past...but this is pure sadism and torture "just for the hell of it" - literally. :....

I wish we'd know for certain the exact facts and deeds of Vlad the Impaler.... but all we have to base ourselves on, are written texts( which are, of course, filtered through one's eyes, subjectivity, imagination, and narration skills), and legends or stories, which....might have been modified(exaggerated) over the years. I could never deny it was not only cruel, but sick to be so blood"thirsty", and we could never know if the man was sane or not, could we? Psychiatry was not a trend back then... We can only be grateful, for the "big" accomplishments: protecting our land and values, and keeping internal criminality at very low rates. We consider him a hero, for the overall "benefits" and progress achieved during his reign. If he would have brought more damage than benefits, he would of never been looked upon as a hero...

Guapo
10-29-2009, 11:58 PM
Ditto....if he did all those things they accuse him of, then he's hardly a hero in my eyes...

A sociopathic serial killer with extreme sadistic tendencies -

Like Countess Elizabeth Bathory :D Interesting to note, His brother converted to Islam and became a "Turk".

Taciturn
10-30-2009, 04:31 AM
p-mNBbgQ2-s

If only the rest of the movie had been like those first 2 minutes! It would have been an absolutely incredible movie, instead of being a vapid and worthless cheese-fest. Admittedly when a movie has such an amazing opening it's kind of hard for the rest of the movie to live up to it, but still.

Horka Ozul
11-10-2009, 07:29 PM
It's funny for me that I still hear many every-day romanians referring to Vlad Tepes as a true justice maker, many people still wish him to be alive to punish the corrupted people by impaling them :D
As a historical figure he haven't left such a big legacy as some other romanian rulers did (Mircea, Mihai, Stefan), after all he was in 3 services only for 8 years voivode of Wallachia. Some things not often mentioned by romanian historians is that at 17 fronting an Ottoman troop he attacked Wallachia, but was defeated by II. Vladislav. He also persecuted the saxons, because of their strong commercial influence in that aria.

Óttar
11-10-2009, 07:42 PM
He was brutal, efficient and knew how to deal with those Turks. In this he is commendable. I'd rather the Saxons have complete economic and cultural dominion in Eastern Europe, imposing and maintaining German as the lingua franca of those areas, but my personal prejudices aside, he did everything he could to make his realm great.

Osweo
11-10-2009, 09:08 PM
Not saying that brutal war tactics did not exist in the past...but this is pure sadism and torture "just for the hell of it" - literally. :....
You should read the old Russian text I have on him from the 16th Century. The punishment for female adultresses he came up with has unfortunately stuck in my memory. :(

I wish we'd know for certain the exact facts and deeds of Vlad the Impaler.... but all we have to base ourselves on, are written texts( which are, of course, filtered through one's eyes, subjectivity, imagination, and narration skills), and legends or stories, which....might have been modified(exaggerated) over the years.
But the sadistic destruction of the Boyars seems true enough, yes? It's no coincidence that my above-mentioned Russian text was written in the time of Ivan IV Grozniy (The Terrible). Old Vanya might have got his own inspiration therefrom... :eek:

he did everything he could to make his realm great.
I would hazard a guess however, that his domestic policy prepared the way for the coming centuries of Ottoman rule. His liquidation of the Boyarschina seems quite on a par with the Soviet raskulachivanie (de-Kulakisation), in so far as it denied the country its most experienced and productive personnel, with similar long term disastrous effects. Apres moi, le deluge, it seems to me. Hardly a responsible attitude for the country's future, and with no durable consequences.

As for the veneration in folk tale, perhaps this was a political class matter, appealing to eternal peasant hatred of landlords?

Taciturn
11-10-2009, 11:43 PM
You should read the old Russian text I have on him from the 16th Century. The punishment for female adultresses he came up with has unfortunately stuck in my memory. :(

What was the punishment?

Osweo
11-11-2009, 12:14 AM
What was the punishment?

I don't know you, Taciturn, and therefore have no cause to take you out of this blissful ignorance... :(

My books are in storage now, but I may translate the whole text some time.

Cato
11-11-2009, 12:40 AM
Vlad is basically like Genghis Khan, revered in his homeland and a monster to the rest of the world.

Taciturn
11-11-2009, 01:11 AM
I don't know you, Taciturn, and therefore have no cause to take you out of this blissful ignorance... :(

Hearing that only makes me even more curious as to what he could have done that could be, literally, so unspeakably atrocious.


Vlad is basically like Genghis Khan, revered in his homeland and a monster to the rest of the world.

Oddly enough, I don't think most non-Mongolians even regard Genghis Khan as being a monster (though he surely was--I once read that he killed off something like 20% of the Old World's population at the time). Most people seem to mainly regard him as being a great conqueror. Contrast the tone of the typical documentary about Genghis Khan with that of Vlad Tepes and you'll find that the difference in portrayals couldn't be bigger.

Hrolf Kraki
11-11-2009, 02:11 AM
I get the impression that Romanians tend to be as sick of Dracula as residents of Kansas are of the Wizard of Oz as all that outsiders ever think of.

Oh how could anyone get sick of the wonderful Wizard of Oz and the yellow brick road!?


I read a book on Vlad Tepes some years back. He was quite an interesting character. Whilst the rest of eastern Europe cringed against the onslaught of the Ottoman Turks, Vlad the Impaler did what he did best and scared Mehmed the Conqueror himself all the way back to Turkey!

Daos
04-15-2010, 07:11 AM
Ah yes, ole Vlad was a very useful Turk-deflector for our great King Matthias, and he certainly knew how to treat those moon-worshippers.

Yet that didn't stop him from capturing and imprisoning him when he came in Transylvania asking for help...


Romanians arent sick of being known for Dracula and the legend, as they are part of our tradition...

No? I sure as hell am!:mad: Especially since it's such nonsense... I hope that idiot Bram Stoker is burning in the deepest bowels of hell.


He also persecuted the saxons, because of their strong commercial influence in that aria.

And that is the source of the smear campaign...;)


And here are a few fun-facts: The Turks, Russians, Poles and even Germans impaled more people than Vlad Țepeș did. It was Poland's favourite execution method for about 400 years. The Swedes practised impaling up until 1643 when they switched to decapitation.;) Darius I impaled about 3000 Babylonians after he conquered Babylon. In Malaysia it was the punishment for rape. The last impaling was made by the French on 14 June 1800 - Suleiman al-Halabi (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Suleiman_al-Halabi).:D

spearofperun
06-13-2010, 08:27 PM
hands down my favorite historical figure. i particularly liked his execution method when he turned the stakes upside down and then put turks through thier asses on the blunt end. the death would take days and your organs are slowly getting crushed or we cant forget how he nailed the turbans to the turkish ambassadors that came to him when they refused to take those things off he made sure they never would come off. can you get any better than vlad??

Aramis
06-13-2010, 08:45 PM
hands down my favorite historical figure. i particularly liked his execution method when he turned the stakes upside down and then put turks through thier asses on the blunt end. the death would take days and your organs are slowly getting crushed or we cant forget how he nailed the turbans to the turkish ambassadors that came to him when they refused to take those things off he made sure they never would come off. can you get any better than vlad??

Ah yes...

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/64/Theodor_Aman_-_Vlad_the_Impaler_and_the_Turkish_Envoys.jpg

Caeruleus
10-09-2011, 05:11 PM
The punishmet for adultery was the skinning alive. Vlad was very cruel but then he was a 15th century king not a 21st century president. :)

My top 3 favourite romanian/moldovan kings

1 Vlad the Impaler (Wallachia)
2 John the Terrible (Moldova)
3 Michael the Brave (Wallachia/United Romania)

Volkodav
10-14-2011, 05:11 PM
Ah yes, ole Vlad was a very useful Turk-deflector for our great King Matthias, and he certainly knew how to treat those moon-worshippers. The last glorious days of Central- Eastern Europe. :vampire

your king, from our bloodline

Sturmgewehr
10-14-2011, 05:56 PM
I've Been to BRAN, visited the castle, very beautiful thing, I mean in General Transylvania is a beautiful place :)

Magister Eckhart
10-14-2011, 06:26 PM
I really have very little comment to make on Vlad Țepeș except that he was a European Hero who has been terribly maligned by people who should regard him as a heartfelt ally.


your king, from our bloodline

Which Matthias are we talking about here? Matthias Hunyadi?

Volkodav
10-15-2011, 06:20 PM
I really have very little comment to make on Vlad Țepeș except that he was a European Hero who has been terribly maligned by people who should regard him as a heartfelt ally.



Which Matthias are we talking about here? Matthias Hunyadi?

Huyandi in magyar, De Hunedoara in romenian, and by his real name Matei Corvin son of Iancu de Hunedoara son of Vladislav Corvin

Arrow Cross
10-15-2011, 11:11 PM
Huyandi in magyar, De Hunedoara in romenian, and by his real name Matei Corvin son of Iancu de Hunedoara son of Vladislav Corvin
http://operatorchan.org/k/src/k306385__implied-facepalm.jpg

Volkodav
10-16-2011, 04:44 PM
http://operatorchan.org/k/src/k306385__implied-facepalm.jpg???? :confused:

Magister Eckhart
10-17-2011, 05:12 AM
???? :confused:

http://thediabeticduo.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/09/implied-facepalm.jpg

The Lawspeaker
10-17-2011, 05:21 AM
The punishmet for adultery was the skinning alive. Vlad was very cruel but then he was a 15th century king not a 21st century president. :)

My top 3 favourite romanian/moldovan kings

1 Vlad the Impaler (Wallachia)
2 John the Terrible (Moldova)
3 Michael the Brave (Wallachia/United Romania)
Someone should resurrect Vlad and make him a European federal president or the like lol. Just for one year. I'll tell you what: what immigration problem ? :wink

By the time he is done it will be nothing more but Sish Kebab.

European blood
10-17-2011, 12:40 PM
Probably Vlad didn't like to eat kebab.

http://www.draculas.info/_img/gallery/vlad_the_impaler_ilustration_germanic__3.jpg

Caeruleus
10-17-2011, 01:15 PM
http://operatorchan.org/k/src/k306385__implied-facepalm.jpg

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Hunyadi

The Hunyadi family were a noble family in the medieval Kingdom of Hungary, of Wallachian[9] (Romanian)[10][11][12][13][14][15][16][17][18] origin according to the majority of sources. Hunyadi was named Valachus or Balachus ("the Wallachian") in some contemporary texts.[19] There are also authors suggesting a possible Slavic origin,[20][21] with other sources suggesting a possible Tatar-Cuman[22][23][24][25][26] descendance.
According to other options, John Hunyadi came from a modest Romanian noble family from Hațeg.[28] Others simply refer to the obscurity surrounding the year of birth and parentage.[29][30] The Hunyadis were first recorded in a royal charter of 1409 in which Sigismund of Luxembourg, then King of Hungary, granted Vojk the Hunyad Castle (in contemporary Hungarian: Hunyadvár, later Vajdahunyad, in present-day Romanian: Hunedoara) and its estates for his distinction in the wars against the Ottomans.

So ... the Hunyads were wathever you want them to be (romanians, slavs, cumans) except hungarians :) ... most people agree that John Hunyadi (Iancu de Hunedoara) was an ethnic ROMANIAN therefore his son Matthias Corvinus was romanian too (well half romanian, his mother was hungarian)

John Hunyadi may have fought for Hungary but that doesn't make him an ethnic hungarian. And there's nothing wrong with having a half romanian king :) You are still the masters of your own greatness (past greatness to be more exact) nobody will claim that romanians made you who you are.

Skanderbeg Is God
10-17-2011, 01:39 PM
He was insane , for Romanians he is maybe great warrior but for me he is another sadistic and schizophrenic personality which history knows, nothing noble about him.

Caeruleus
10-17-2011, 01:51 PM
He was insane , for Romanians he is maybe great warrior but for me he is another sadistic and schizophrenic personality which history knows, nothing noble about him.

why is that ? beacuse he killed muslims ? he was a christian and from a christian point of view he was doing the right thing ... the fact that he was cruel does not make him less of a great warrior or less of a man (after all we're talking about 15th century here)

Saladin was a muslim and he killed christians but I still think that he was a great man.

take off the muslim goggles mate.

Skanderbeg Is God
10-17-2011, 02:04 PM
why is that ? beacuse he killed muslims ? he was a christian and from a christian point of view he was doing the right thing ... the fact that he was cruel does not make him less of a great warrior or less of a man (after all we're talking about 15th century here)

Saladin was a muslim and he killed christians but I still think that he was a great man.

take off the muslim goggles mate.
Mate i didn't said he was not great warrior for Romanians, but my opinion is that insanity do not make you noble , between warrior and noble exist a huge difference.

Exactly his insanity makes him less man

This your sentence about muslim is absurdity,and i really dont give a fuck about Saladin, why you need to generalise things on religion, i know Vlad was christian, also i know that Saladin was muslim.

Caeruleus
10-17-2011, 02:26 PM
Mate i didn't said he was not great warrior for Romanians, but my opinion is that insanity do not make you noble , between warrior and noble exist a huge difference.

Exactly his insanity makes him less man

This shit about muslim is boring me and i really dont give a fuck about Saladin, why you need to generalise things on religion, i know Vlad was christian, also i know that Saladin was muslim.

Well, I mentioned religion because your opinion seems to be influenced by it (sorry if I'm wrong). Middle-Age kings (especially warrior-kings) were cruel and when they went to war they did that for one reason only TO KILL ... sure some of them use to go over the top (like Vlad) but that's how things use to be back then

funny thing, you seem to worship Skanderbeg but genuinly dislike Vlad the Impaler although they did the same work (fight against ottoman turks) and together with Stephen the Great of Moldova were the best anti-ottoman resistance of that period :)

Anyways I'm not gonna teach you what to do and who to admire :) cheers

Skanderbeg Is God
10-17-2011, 02:35 PM
Well, I mentioned religion because your opinion seems to be influenced by it (sorry if I'm wrong).
You were wrong , but no problem.

Middle-Age kings (especially warrior-kings) were cruel and when they went to war they did that for one reason only TO KILL ... sure some of them use to go over the top (like Vlad) but that's how things use to be back then
You know better than me, that his sadistic behaviour when he came to throne was result of his early life.


funny thing, you seem to worship Skanderberg but genuinly dislike Vlad the Impaler although they did the same work (fight against ottoman turks) and together with Stephen the Great of Moldova were the best anti-ottoman resistance of that period :)

Skanderbeg was not insane, this is the difference between him and Vlad.


Anyways I'm not gonna teach what to do and who to admire :) cheers
Of course

Caeruleus
10-17-2011, 02:58 PM
In 1436, Vlad II Dracul ascended the throne of Wallachia. He was ousted in 1442 by rival factions in league with Hungary, but secured Ottoman support for his return agreeing to pay the Jizya (tax on non-Muslims) to the Sultan and also send his two legitimate sons, Vlad the Impaler and Radu, to the Ottoman court, to serve as hostages of his royalty.
Vlad the Impaler was imprisoned and often whipped and beaten because of his verbal abuse towards his trainers and his stubborn behavior, while his younger brother Radu was much easier to control. Radu converted to Islam, entered the service of Sultan Murad II's son, Mehmed II (later known as the Conqueror), and was allowed into the Topkapı Palace. Radu was also honored by the title Bey and was given command of the Janissary contingents.
These years presumably had a great influence on Vlad's character and led to Vlad's well-known hatred for the Ottoman Turks, the Janissary, his brother Radu for converting to Islam and the young Ottoman prince Mehmed II (even after he became sultan). He was envious of his father's preference for his elder brother, Mircea II and half brother, Vlad Călugărul. He also distrusted the Hungarians and his own father for trading him to the Turks and betraying the Order of the Dragon's oath to fight the Ottoman Empire.

You call this insanity, i call this guts (the guy had balls). I would go as far as to say that any normal man would do the same thing (would react in a similar manner), he was wronged and he had his revenge ... hell I myself would impale the fuckers, I would cut their heads and piss in their throats.

Vlad was a well educated man (spoke some 5-6 languages), so what if he liked to torture people !? :) big deal :D

Curtis24
10-17-2011, 03:08 PM
Anyways I'm not gonna teach what to do and who to admire cheers

But this is exactly what you're doing.

Caeruleus
10-17-2011, 03:18 PM
But this is exactly what you're doing.

nope ... i'm only defending Vlad's good name. I do not say think this and do this, Skanderbeg is free to choose whatever he wants as long as he sees the whole picture.

The Lawspeaker
10-18-2011, 12:09 AM
Probably Vlad didn't like to eat kebab.

http://www.draculas.info/_img/gallery/vlad_the_impaler_ilustration_germanic__3.jpg
He could have mixed it in with pork and fed it to the starving Turks. :p