Vlad the Impaler

History
Vlad the Impaler (1431-1476), also known as Vlad III and Vlad Dracula (literally: "Son of the dragon" or "Son of Satan") was the Prince of Wallachia (in modern day Romania) who is best known historically for his resistance against the Ottoman Empire and its expansion, and for the cruel punishments he imposed on his rivals. In the English-speaking world, he is perhaps best remembered for possibly inspiring the name of the titular vampire from Bram Stoker's 1897 novel Dracula.

The title "the Impaler" refers to his habit of having his enemies impaled upon stakes. The consensus among most historians is that anywhere from 40,000-100,000 victims were impaled during Vlad's three reigns as prince. It was also reported that in 1462, Mehmed II, the man who conquered Constantinople (modern-day Istanbul, Turkey) and was well-renowned for his own psychological tactics, was forced to retreat in disgust at the sight of 20,000 impaled corpses (many of them Turkish prisoners of war) outside of Vlad's capital.

Vlad was also a courageous man- he led from the front and never let his men do all the fighting. Although he is renowned for his cruelty throughout most of Western Europe, he is regarded as a national hero in his native Romania.

Once, Vlad had peasants and beggars, the lowest of the low, come to a big feast. When they were all drunk, Vlad asked if they wanted to never be hungry again. When they said yes, Vlad left and ordered his guards to burn the dinning hall down with all the people inside.

Vlad was known throughout his land for his fierce insistence on honesty and order. Thieves seldom dared practice their trade within his domain, for they knew that the stake awaited any who were caught. Vlad was so confident in the effectiveness of his law that he laced a golden cup on display in the central square of Tirgoviste. The cup was never stolen and remained entirely unmolested throughout Vlad’s reign. Another storys goes Vlad once had a mistress that lived in a house in the back streets of Tirgoviste. This woman apparently loved the prince to distraction and was always anxious to please him. Vlad was often moody and depressed and the woman made every effort to lighten her lover’s burdens. Once, when he was particularly depressed, the woman dared tell him the lie that she was with child. Vlad had the woman examined by the bath matrons. When informed that the woman was lying, Vlad drew his knife and cut her open from the groin to her breast, leaving her to die in agony.

Another story tells of a merchant from a foreign land visiting Tirgoviste. Aware of the reputation of Vlad’s land for honesty, he left a treasure-laden cart unguarded in the street overnight. Upon returning to his wagon in the morning, the merchant was shocked to find 160 golden ducats missing. Then the merchant complained of his loss to the prince, Vlad assured him that his money would be returned. Vlad Dracula then issued a proclamation to the city—find the thief and return the money or the city will be destroyed. During the night he ordered that 160 ducats plus one extra be taken from his own treasury and placed in the merchant’s cart. On returning to his cart the next morning and counting his money the merchant discovered the extra ducat. The merchant returned to Vlad and reported that his money had indeed been returned plus an extra ducat. Meanwhile the thief had been captured and turned over to the prince’s guards along with the stolen money. Vlad ordered the thief impaled and informed the merchant that if he had not reported the extra ducat he would have been impaled alongside the thief.

(Deadliest Warrior Wiki)

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