The town of Bran is situated in the Brasov depression. Every year it's visited by a large number of tourists, attracted by the castle, an important monument of feudal Romanian architecture, as well as the beauty of it's surroundings.

The citadel was built by craftsmen from Brasov, at the order of the Teutonic knights, beginning in 1212. It was known by the name of Dietrichstein at the time. The citadel defended  the Bran Pass witch was across the most important commercial road, which tied "Tara Romāneasca"(The Romanian Country) and Transylvania in the Middle Ages. In 1377, craftsmen from Brasov built a new stronghold to defend Bran pass.

In time, it belonged to the Romanian Country during Mircea cel Batran, then to the nobles from Brasov. In 1651 they became owners of the castle ("forever and irrevocable "). 
After the revolution of 1848-1849 when the feudal domain of Bran ceased its existence, the citadel became the headquarters of one the forest detour administered by a castellan. At 1 December 1920 the castle was donated to the royal family, becoming a summer residence until 30 December 1947.In 1956 it was turned into a museum.Many foreign travelers passed through Bran's pass either on the occasion of different diplomatic missions carried out at voivodes' courts in Transylvania  and Wallachia, or on their way to Constantinople. 

The citadel has an irregular plane, determined by the configuration of the crag where it was built. For construction river boulders, bricks and wood were used.

It has three towers. In the West side, one of a cylinder form, used to store the gunpowder. At base of the tower there is the cannoneer's room. In the North side a watch tower was built - the donjon - with a rectangular form. This has 6 shooting windows, in groups of two, one under another. In the upper part is the watchtower, from where the guards watched the pass, announcing the arrival of the enemy. In the East, another rectangular tower, with two closed balconies with a bore floor, called the "machicoulis", through the garrison of the citadel poured on the enemies hot oil or boiling water. 

It is said that Bran Castle was the home of the fierce count Dracula. But who was actually Dracula ?...

Bran Castle's signet-XVIIIth century

 

 

Short history | Bran as a stronghold - construction | Castle's architecture | Travelers' stories | Dracula - legend and reality