Vlad II Dracul
Vlad II, Dracul (c. 1390 – 1447) was a ruler of Wallachia (located in present day Romania) from 1436 to 1442 and again from 1443 to 1447. He was a member of the royal House of Basarab I and son of Mircea cel Batran. The ruler of Wallachia was officially a vassal of the King of Hungary. He was also Frontier Commander with the responsibility of protecting commerce and trade routes from Transylvania to Wallachia for the Roman Catholic Chuch. Although Vlad II was in favor with the Roman Catholic Church, he is known to have murdered members of the rival royal House of Danesti, a not-so-distant relation to his own father's House of Basarab. The House of
Basarab was founded by Basarab I . This is of course how he gained power in Wallachia, upon returning from exile in Transylvania in 1436.
Vlad II Dracul received his title "Dracul" from his induction into the Order of the Dragon. In 1431, he was titled into the "Order of the Dragon." by Holy Roman Emperor Sigismund, a creed designed to gain political favor for the church and to protect the Hungarian-Romanian royal family from the Ottoman Empire of the Turks. The Order of the Dragon was founded on December 13, 1408, with Sigismund (then King of Hungary) as an original founding member.
Although Vlad II was a successful general, accomplished ruler, and ordained medieval royalty, he is best known for the exploits of his son, Vlad III. Vlad III is better known as Dracula or Vlad the Impaler. Vlad II had at least two other sons, Mircea, Dracula's elder brother, and Radu the Handsome, Dracula's younger brother. Translation Note: "Dracula" loosely translates as "Son of Dracul," although ironically, history will no doubt most remember Vlad II as "Father of Dracula" which literally translates into "Father of the Son of Dracul."
An alternative translation of Dracul is devil, in addition to dragon. During his time Vlad II was also known as the Vlad II, the Devil.
The political situation in Wallachia
The power of the Turks was growing rapidly as one by one the small states of the Balkans surrendered to the Ottoman.
At the same time the power of Hungary was reaching its zenith and would peak during the time of John Hunyadi (Iancu de Hunedoara, of Romania origin), the White Knight of Hungary, and his son King Matthius Corvinus (Mathyas Rex, or Matei Corvin, whose statue can be seen in Cluj Napoca).
Any prince of Wallachia had to balance his policies precariously between these two powerful neighbors and sometimes the Russians. The prince of Wallachia was officially a vassal of the King of Hungary.
In addition, Vlad Dracul was a member of the Order of the Dragon and sworn to fight the infidel.
At the same time the power of the Ottomans seemed unstoppable.
Even in the time of Vlad's grandfather, Mircea the Old, Wallachia had been forced to pay tribute to the Sultan in spite some victories against the Turks. Vlad was forced to renew that tribute and from 1436-1442 attempted to walk a middle coarse between his powerful neighbors.
In 1442 Vlad attempted to remain neutral when the Turks invaded Transylvania.
The Turks were defeated and the vengeful Hungarians under John Hunyadi (the lord of the Huniazi castle) forced Dracul and his family to flee Wallachia.
Hunyadi placed a Danesti, Basarab II, on the Wallachian throne. In 1443 Vlad II regained the Wallachian throne with Turkish support, on the condition that he sign a new treaty with the sultan that included not only the customary annual tribute but the promise to yearly send contingents of Wallachian boys to join the sultans Janissaries.
In 1444, to further assure to the sultan of his good faith, Vlad II sent his two younger sons to Adrianople as hostages. Dracula remained as a hostage in Adrianople until 1448.
In 1444 the King of Hungary, Ladislas Poshumous, broke the peace and launched the Varna campaign under the command of John Hunyadi in an effort to drive the Turks out of Europe. Hunyadi demanded that Vlad II fulfill his oath as a member of the Order of the Dragon and a vassal of Hungary and join the crusade against the Turks.
The Pope absolved Dracul of his Turkish oath but the wily politician still attempted to steer a middle coarse.
Rather than join the Christian forces himself he sent his oldest son, Mircea.
Perhaps he hoped the Sultan would spare his younger sons if he himself did not join the crusade.
The Christian army was utterly destroyed in the Battle of Varna. John Hunyadi managed to escape the battle under conditions that add little glory to the White Knight's reputation.
Many, apparently including Mircea toamna and his father, blamed Hunyadi for the debacle.
From this moment forth John Hunyadi was bitterly hostile toward Vlad Dracul and his eldest son. In 1447 Vlad Dracul was assassinated along with his son Mircea. Mircea was apparently buried alive by the boyars and merchants of Targoviste. On receiving the news of Vlad Dracul's death the Turks released Dracula and supported him as their own candidate for the Wallachian throne. In 1448 Dracula managed to briefly seize the Wallachian throne with Turkish support. Within two months Hunyadi forced Dracula to surrender the throne and flee to his cousin, the Prince of Moldavia, while Hunyadi once again placed Vladislav II on the Wallachian throne.
Dracula remained in exile in Moldavia for three years, until Prince Bogdan of Moldavia was assassinated in 1451.
The resulting turmoil in Moldavia forced Dracula to flee to Transylvania and seek the protection of his family enemy, Hunyadi.
The timing was propitious; Hunyadi's puppet on the Wallachian throne, Vladislov II, had instituted a pro-Turkish policy and Hunyadi needed a more reliable man in Wallachia. Consequently, Hunyadi accepted the allegiance of his old 's son and put him forward as the Hungarian candidate for the throne of Wallachia. Dracula became Hunyadi's vassal and received his father's old Transylvanian duchies of Faragas and Almas. Dracula remained in Transylvania, under Hunyadi's protection, until 1456 waiting for an opportunity to retake Wallachia from his rival.
