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* In Creator/LawrenceWattEvans's short story "The Name of Fear", a Romanian vampire kills Vlad Dracula and later impersonates an undead version of him, in order to bring back the fear of vampires. It works: the peasants, who formerly easily protected themselves from vampires by usual wards, now don't dare to use something like this against the dreaded "Vlad".
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* MeaningfulName: Vlad is a shortened form of Vladislav[[note]]Also Vladimir, but he used the latter[[/note]], which means either "rule"[[note]]Vlad[[/note]], or "to rule with glory"[[note]]Vladislav[[/note]]. Any of those work for him quite well.
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* MeaningfulName: Vlad is a shortened form of Vladislav[[note]]Also Vladimir, but he used the latter[[/note]], former[[/note]], which means either "rule"[[note]]Vlad[[/note]], "to rule with greatness"[[note]]Vladimir[[/note]], or "to rule with glory"[[note]]Vladislav[[/note]]. Any of those work for him quite well.
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* Appeared in episode six in the first season of ''Series/DaVincisDemons'' ("The Devil").
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* MeaningfulName: Vlad, is a shortened form of either Vladimir or Vladislav[[note]]it's unknown which his is shortened from, or if it's on it's own[[/note]], which means either "rule"[[note]]Vlad[[/note]], "to rule with greatness"[[note]]Vladimir[[/note]] or "to rule with glory"[[note]]Vladislav[[/note]]. Any of those three work for him quite well.
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* MeaningfulName: Vlad, Vlad is a shortened form of either Vladimir or Vladislav[[note]]it's unknown which his is shortened from, or if it's on it's own[[/note]], Vladislav[[note]]Also Vladimir, but he used the latter[[/note]], which means either "rule"[[note]]Vlad[[/note]], "to rule with greatness"[[note]]Vladimir[[/note]] or "to rule with glory"[[note]]Vladislav[[/note]]. Any of those three work for him quite well.
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* RedBaron: [[RunningGag Dracula, The Impaler]].
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* RedBaron: [[RunningGag Dracula, The Impaler]]. In Turkish, Kaziklu Bey (Impaler Prince).
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* SpellMyNameWithAnS: In Latin documents he rendered his name as ''Wladislaus Dragwlya''.
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** According to legend, Vlad allowed golden cups to stand in the center of city plazas (or in public fountains), as he knew no one would dare steal such a treasure under his rule (and none of the cups were ever stolen). The towns feared that Vlad would destroy the whole city to capture the thief. He also threatened to do this in a story where a merchant staying overnight in his castle had some goods stolen. By morning, the goods were returned and the thief had surrendered.
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** According to legend, Vlad allowed golden cups to stand in the center of city plazas (or in public fountains), as he knew no one would dare steal such a treasure under his rule (and none of the cups were ever stolen). The towns feared that Vlad would destroy the whole city to capture the thief.
** He also threatened to do this in a story where a merchantstaying overnight in his castle had some goods gold coins stolen. By morning, the goods coins were returned and the thief had surrendered.surrendered and was impaled. (Vlad also placed an extra gold coin from his own pocket into the returned money bag, but the merchant gave it back after counting his money. Vlad praised his honesty and added that he would have been impaled along with the thief if he hadn't.)
** He also threatened to do this in a story where a merchant
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** The story goes that he invited every beggar in Wallachia to a feast, then set fire to the hall they were in so he could rightly say ''Wallachia has no beggars''.
** Another story goes that some diplomats refused to take off their caps or turbans in his presence because it was their custom to ''keep their heads covered''. Vlad ordered their caps to be nailed to their heads.
** Another story goes that some diplomats refused to take off their caps or turbans in his presence because it was their custom to ''keep their heads covered''. Vlad ordered their caps to be nailed to their heads.
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** The story goes that he invited every beggar in Wallachia to a feast, then set fire to the hall feast in a great hall. He asked them if they were in would like to be ''delivered from the cares of this world''. When they said yes, he had the building set on fire... so he could rightly say ''Wallachia has ''there are no beggars''.
beggars in my realm''.
** Another story goes that some diplomats refused to take off their caps or turbans in his presence because it was their custom to ''keep their heads covered''. Vlad ordered theircaps headgear to be nailed to their heads. The story changes tone depending on the headgear - if caps, Vlad is committing atrocities against fellow Christians; if turbans, Vlad is [[AcceptableTargets defying the Turks.]]
** Another story goes that some diplomats refused to take off their caps or turbans in his presence because it was their custom to ''keep their heads covered''. Vlad ordered their
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* BlackComedy: A story goes that when a noble complained about the stench of impaled people, Vlad had him impaled higher than usual so he wouldn't smell the rest.
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* DisproportionateRetribution: According to legend, Vlad allowed golden cups to stand in the center of city plazas, as he knew no one would dare steal such a treasure under his rule (and none of the cups were ever stolen). The towns feared that Vlad would destroy the town to capture the thief.
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* DisproportionateRetribution: DisproportionateRetribution:
** According to legend, Vlad allowed golden cups to stand in the center of cityplazas, plazas (or in public fountains), as he knew no one would dare steal such a treasure under his rule (and none of the cups were ever stolen). The towns feared that Vlad would destroy the town whole city to capture the thief. He also threatened to do this in a story where a merchant staying overnight in his castle had some goods stolen. By morning, the goods were returned and the thief had surrendered.
** He is said to have cut his mistress open after she lied about being pregnant with his child.
** A story goes that he saw a man with a shirt that was too short for him. Upon learning he was married, he had the wife impaled for laziness, arranged for the man to marry again, and threatened the new wife with the same fate if she didn't sew a proper shirt for her husband.
** According to legend, Vlad allowed golden cups to stand in the center of city
** He is said to have cut his mistress open after she lied about being pregnant with his child.
** A story goes that he saw a man with a shirt that was too short for him. Upon learning he was married, he had the wife impaled for laziness, arranged for the man to marry again, and threatened the new wife with the same fate if she didn't sew a proper shirt for her husband.
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* ExactWords:
** The story goes that he invited every beggar in Wallachia to a feast, then set fire to the hall they were in so he could rightly say ''Wallachia has no beggars''.
** Another story goes that some diplomats refused to take off their caps or turbans in his presence because it was their custom to ''keep their heads covered''. Vlad ordered their caps to be nailed to their heads.
** The story goes that he invited every beggar in Wallachia to a feast, then set fire to the hall they were in so he could rightly say ''Wallachia has no beggars''.
** Another story goes that some diplomats refused to take off their caps or turbans in his presence because it was their custom to ''keep their heads covered''. Vlad ordered their caps to be nailed to their heads.
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* ''VideoGame/CastlevaniaLamentOfInnocence'' serves as a spin on Dracula's OriginsEpisode: instead of Vlad Tepes, Dracula is [[spoiler: the fictional Crusader Mathias Cronqvist, former friend of the Belmonts.]] However, this character is partially ''named'' after a real person who spread inflated tales of Vlad III's harsh rule: Matthias Corvinus.
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* ''VideoGame/CastlevaniaLamentOfInnocence'' serves as a spin on Dracula's OriginsEpisode: OriginsEpisode in the ''Franchise/{{Castlevania}}'' series: instead of Vlad Tepes, Dracula is [[spoiler: the fictional Crusader Mathias Cronqvist, former friend of the Belmonts.]] However, this character is partially ''named'' after a real person who spread inflated tales of Vlad III's harsh rule: Matthias Corvinus.
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* ''Comicbook/DraculaLives'', a SpinOff from Creator/MarvelComics' ''Comicbook/TheTombOfDracula'', tells its own story of how Vlad Dracula became the Lord of Vampires alongside with other tales of villainy and bloodsucking.
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Impalement was, and still is, one of the most gruesome ways of dying imaginable.[[note]][[{{Squick}} Vlad the Impaler usually had a horse attached to each of the victim's legs and a sharpened stake was gradually forced into the body. The end of the stake was usually oiled and care was taken that the stake not be too sharp, else the victim might die too rapidly from shock. Normally the stake was inserted into the body through the buttocks and was often forced through the body until it emerged from the mouth. However, there were many instances where victims were impaled through other bodily orifices or through the abdomen or chest. Infants were sometimes impaled on the stake forced through their mothers' chests. The records indicate that victims were sometimes impaled so that they hung upside down on the stake.]][[/note]]
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Impalement was, and still is, one of the most gruesome ways of dying imaginable.[[note]][[{{Squick}} [[note]][[NauseaFuel Vlad the Impaler usually had a horse attached to each of the victim's legs and a sharpened stake was gradually forced into the body. The end of the stake was usually oiled and care was taken that the stake not be too sharp, else the victim might die too rapidly from shock. Normally the stake was inserted into the body through the buttocks and was often forced through the body until it emerged from the mouth. However, there were many instances where victims were impaled through other bodily orifices or through the abdomen or chest. Infants were sometimes impaled on the stake forced through their mothers' chests. The records indicate that victims were sometimes impaled so that they hung upside down on the stake.]][[/note]]
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Born in Transylvania in the winter of 1431, into the noble family of Dukes, Vlad was born in Sighișoara, Transylvania (part of Romania), on December 1st, 1431 to Vlad II Dracul, future Voivode of Wallachia. Vlad's father was the son of the celebrated Voivode Mircea the Elder. His mother is unknown, though at the time his father is believed to have been married to Princess Cneajna of Moldavia (eldest daughter of Alexander "the Good", Prince of Moldavia and aunt to Stephen the Great of Moldavia) and also to have kept a number of mistresses. He had two older half-brothers, Mircea II and Vlad Călugărul, and a younger brother, Radu III the Handsome.
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In the year of his birth Vlad's father, known under the nickname ''Dracul'', had traveled to Nuremberg where he had been vested into the Order of the Dragon. At the age of five, young Vlad was also initiated into the Order.
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 III and Radu, to the Ottoman court, to serve as hostages of his royalty.
Vlad III was imprisoned and often whipped and beaten because of his verbal abuse towards his trainers and his stubborn behavior. 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.
Vlad was later released under probation and taken to be educated in logic, the Quran and the Turkish and Persian languages and works of literature. He would speak these languages fluently in his later years. He and his brother were also trained in warfare and riding horses. The boys' father, Vlad Dracul, was awarded the support of the Ottomans and returned to Wallachia and took back his throne from Basarab II and some unfaithful Boyars.
Even during his lifetime, Vlad III Țepeș became famous as a tyrant taking sadistic pleasure in torturing and killing. After Vlad's death, his cruel deeds were reported with macabre gusto in popular pamphlets in Germany, reprinted from the 1480s until the 1560s, and to a lesser extent in Tsarist Russia.
Estimates for number of his victims ranges from 40,000 to 100,000, comparable to the cumulative number of executions over four centuries of European witchhunts. According to the German stories the number of victims he had killed was at least 80,000. In addition to the 80,000 victims mentioned he also had whole villages and fortresses destroyed and burned to the ground. These numbers are most likely exaggerated.
Impalement was Vlad's preferred method of torture and execution. Several of the woodcut from the German pamphlets of the late 15th and early 16th centuries show Vlad feasting in a forest of stakes and their grisly burdens outside Brașov, while a nearby executioner cuts apart other victims. It was reported that an invading Ottoman army turned back in fright when it encountered a forest of impaled corpses along the Danube River. It has also been said that in 1462 Mehmed II, the conqueror of Constantinople, a man noted for his own psychological warfare tactics, returned to Constantinople after being sickened by the sight of 20,000 impaled corpses outside Vlad's capital of Târgoviște.
Vlad was killed shortly into his 3rd reign as Prince of Wallachia. There's debate over if Vlad was assassinated or died in battle, but his murdered corpse was decapitated and his head impaled by the Ottomans at Constantinople as a trophy, and his body was buried unceremoniously by his rival, Basarab Laiota, possibly at Comana, a monastery founded by Vlad in 1461. The Comana monastery was demolished and rebuilt from scratch in 1589. In 1415, 35 years after his death, Wallachia finally was defeated by the Ottomans and became a vassal of the Ottoman Empire.
Allegedly, the reputation of Vlad's cruelty was actively promoted by Matthias Corvinus, who tarnished Vlad’s reputation and credibility for a political reason: as an explanation for why he had not helped Vlad fight the Ottomans in 1462, for which purpose he had received money from most Catholic states in Europe. Matthias employed the charges of Southeastern Transylvania, and produced fake letters of high treason, written on 7 November 1462.
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The exact length of Vlad's period of captivity is open to some debate, though indications are that it was from 1462 until 1474. Diplomatic correspondence from Buda seems to indicate that the period of Vlad's effective confinement was relatively short. Radu's openly pro-Ottoman policy as voivode probably contributed to Vlad's rehabilitation. Moreover, Ștefan cel Mare, Voivode of Moldavia and relative of Vlad intervened on his behalf to be released from prison as the Ottoman pressure on the territories north of the Danube was increasing.
After Radu's sudden death in 1475, Vlad III declared his third reign in 26 November 1476. Vlad began preparations for the reconquest of Wallachia in 1476 with Hungarian support. Vlad's third reign had lasted little more than two months when he was killed in battle against the Turks. The exact date of his death is unknown, presumably 31 October or the end of December 1476, but it is known that he was dead by 10 January 1477. The exact location of his death is also unknown, but it would have been somewhere along the road between Bucharest and Giurgiu. Vlad's head was taken to Constantinople as a trophy, and his body was buried unceremoniously by his rival, Basarab Laiota, possibly at Comana, a monastery founded by Vlad in 1461. The Comana monastery was demolished and rebuilt from scratch in 1589.
After Radu's sudden death in 1475, Vlad III declared his third reign in 26 November 1476. Vlad began preparations for the reconquest of Wallachia in 1476 with Hungarian support. Vlad's third reign had lasted little more than two months when he was killed in battle against the Turks. The exact date of his death is unknown, presumably 31 October or the end of December 1476, but it is known that he was dead by 10 January 1477. The exact location of his death is also unknown, but it would have been somewhere along the road between Bucharest and Giurgiu. Vlad's head was taken to Constantinople as a trophy, and his body was buried unceremoniously by his rival, Basarab Laiota, possibly at Comana, a monastery founded by Vlad in 1461. The Comana monastery was demolished and rebuilt from scratch in 1589.
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After Radu's sudden death in 1475, Vlad III declared his third reign in 26 November 1476. Vlad began preparations for the reconquest of Wallachia in 1476 with Hungarian support. Vlad's third reign had lasted little more than two months when he was killed in battle against the Turks. The exact date of his death is unknown, presumably 31 October or the end of December 1476, but it is known that he was dead by 10 January 1477. The exact location of his death is also unknown, but it would have been somewhere along the road between Bucharest and Giurgiu. Vlad's head was taken to Constantinople as a trophy, and his body was buried unceremoniously by his rival, Basarab Laiota, possibly at Comana, a monastery founded by Vlad in 1461. The Comana monastery was demolished and rebuilt from scratch in 1589.
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* AsskickingEqualsAuthority / AuthorityEqualsAsskicking: Lead his armies and was a very decent warrior to boot.
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* AsskickingEqualsAuthority / AuthorityEqualsAsskicking: Lead Very often lead his armies personally and was a very decent warrior to boot.boot.
* AwesomeMcCoolName: Both his titles, Dracula and "the Impaler"
* AwesomeMcCoolName: Both his titles, Dracula and "the Impaler"
** BadassInDistress: When he was held prisoner by the Turks.
* DisproportionateRetribution: According to legend, Vlad allowed golden cups to stand in the center of city plazas, as he knew no one would dare steal such a treasure under his rule (and none of the cups were ever stolen). The towns feared that Vlad would destroy the town to capture the thief.
* DressingAsTheEnemy: He actually ''PERSONALLY'' did this with his soldier against the Ottomans on several occasions.
* DressingAsTheEnemy: He actually ''PERSONALLY'' did this with his soldier against the Ottomans on several occasions.
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* HistoricalHeroUpgrade / HistoricalVillainUpgrade: He's got it as bad as NapoleonBonaparte.
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* HistoricalHeroUpgrade / '''and''' HistoricalVillainUpgrade: He's got it as bad as NapoleonBonaparte.RichardTheLionHeart. He has been depicted as everything from a just, if harsh, leader of his people to a bloodthirsty brute deliberately slaughtering innocents. The truth presumably lies somewhere in between.
* HoldTheLine / StandYourGround: Vlad was, essentially, the gatekeeper of Europe. He stopped countless invasion attempts of the Ottoman empire for years before his death.
* HoldTheLine / StandYourGround: Vlad was, essentially, the gatekeeper of Europe. He stopped countless invasion attempts of the Ottoman empire for years before his death.
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* {{Irony}}: The same Turks who beat and tortured Vlad when he was a child fell by his hand when he was an adult.
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* {{Irony}}: The same Turks who beat and beat, tortured and trained Vlad when he was a child fell by his hand when he was an adult.
* FolkHero: In Romania as well as other parts of Europe for his protection of the Romanian population both south and north of the Danube.
* LaserGuidedKarma: The Ottomans probably regretted teaching Vlad all those tactics because of the sheer hell he raised for them.
* MeaningfulName: Vlad, is a shortened form of either Vladimir or Vladislav[[note]]it's unknown which his is shortened from, or if it's on it's own[[/note]], which means either "rule"[[note]]Vlad[[/note]], "to rule with greatness"[[note]]Vladimir[[/note]] or "to rule with glory"[[note]]Vladislav[[/note]]. Any of those three work for him quite well.
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* ReligiousBruiser: He was a Christian fighting against the Turks.
* RoyalsWhoActuallyDoSomething
* UrbanLegends: There are so many on Vlad it can get a bit crazy.
* RoyalsWhoActuallyDoSomething
* UrbanLegends: There are so many on Vlad it can get a bit crazy.
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* ReligiousBruiser: He was a Christian fighting against the Islamic Ottoman Turks.
*RoyalsWhoActuallyDoSomething
RoyalsWhoActuallyDoSomething: Obviously. Vlad III, in all interpretations, was at least a {{Badass}} warrior.
* TheStrategist: He was a great tactician, always taking advantage of the surroundings to full extent, because he was always outnumbered by his enemies (especially the ottomans, about 7 to 1 on average). He was also cunning and great at deceiving the enemy; and even known for going himself with a small contingent disguised as the enemy, behind their lines and taking them out on several occasions.
* TookALevelInBadass: The FallOfConstantinople is what rocketed his badassery very rapidly.
* UrbanLegends: There are so many on Vlad it can get a bit crazy. Most being whether he really was a vampire, where he's buried, and if he will rise from the grave if his remains are disturbed.
*
* TheStrategist: He was a great tactician, always taking advantage of the surroundings to full extent, because he was always outnumbered by his enemies (especially the ottomans, about 7 to 1 on average). He was also cunning and great at deceiving the enemy; and even known for going himself with a small contingent disguised as the enemy, behind their lines and taking them out on several occasions.
* TookALevelInBadass: The FallOfConstantinople is what rocketed his badassery very rapidly.
* UrbanLegends: There are so many on Vlad it can get a bit crazy. Most being whether he really was a vampire, where he's buried, and if he will rise from the grave if his remains are disturbed.
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Surprisingly, while German, Russian, Hungarian, and Turkish literature and folklore all portray Dracul as a monster, he's considered a hero in Romania for his opposition to both Hungarian and Ottoman conquest, being voted among the 100 Greatest Romanians as recently as 2006. (Compare RichardTheLionHeart, NapoleonBonaparte or UsefulNotes/GeorgeWashington.)
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Surprisingly, while German, Russian, Hungarian, and Turkish literature and folklore all portray Dracul Dracula as a monster, he's considered a hero in Romania for his opposition to both Hungarian and Ottoman conquest, being voted among the 100 Greatest Romanians as recently as 2006. (Compare RichardTheLionHeart, NapoleonBonaparte or UsefulNotes/GeorgeWashington.)
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* The Universal Studios [[Film/{{Dracula 1931}} version]] starring Creator/BelaLugosi (Number 79 on Bravo's OneHundredScariestMovieMoments), adapted from a stage play adaptation he had appeared in, is the most famous. Modern interpretations of the character and the story are more often based on it than the [[FilmOfTheBook book]].
** A Spanish version was filmed at the exact same time and used the same sets, but at the same time featured extended/extra dialogue and scenes, as well as more elaborate camera work. It was also not subject to as stringent censorship standards and it's generally less [[{{Narm}} narm-y]], save for the title Character. It actually garnered a higher rating from several critics.
** The Lugosi version had several sequels: ''Film/DraculasDaughter'', ''Film/SonOfDracula'', ''Film/HouseOfFrankenstein'', ''Film/HouseOfDracula'', comedy spoof/crossover ''Film/AbbottAndCostelloMeetFrankenstein'', and a miniseries remake of ''[[Series/HouseOfFrankenstein1997 House of Frankenstein]]'' in 1997.
** Universal Pictures made a second adaptation of ''Film/{{Dracula|1979}}'' in 1979. It's based on the same play as the 1931 film was, and like Bela Lugosi before him, Frank Langella came to the title role via his success playing it on stage. This version presents Dracula as a much more romantic figure, particularly where his relationship with Lucy -- whose story function is swapped with Mina's -- is concerned, than the novel and previous adaptations did, presaging a similar rethinking of the character in ''Film/BramStokersDracula''. (Other changes: this doomed Mina is also Van Helsing's daughter, and the temporal setting is 1913.)
** A Spanish version was filmed at the exact same time and used the same sets, but at the same time featured extended/extra dialogue and scenes, as well as more elaborate camera work. It was also not subject to as stringent censorship standards and it's generally less [[{{Narm}} narm-y]], save for the title Character. It actually garnered a higher rating from several critics.
** The Lugosi version had several sequels: ''Film/DraculasDaughter'', ''Film/SonOfDracula'', ''Film/HouseOfFrankenstein'', ''Film/HouseOfDracula'', comedy spoof/crossover ''Film/AbbottAndCostelloMeetFrankenstein'', and a miniseries remake of ''[[Series/HouseOfFrankenstein1997 House of Frankenstein]]'' in 1997.
** Universal Pictures made a second adaptation of ''Film/{{Dracula|1979}}'' in 1979. It's based on the same play as the 1931 film was, and like Bela Lugosi before him, Frank Langella came to the title role via his success playing it on stage. This version presents Dracula as a much more romantic figure, particularly where his relationship with Lucy -- whose story function is swapped with Mina's -- is concerned, than the novel and previous adaptations did, presaging a similar rethinking of the character in ''Film/BramStokersDracula''. (Other changes: this doomed Mina is also Van Helsing's daughter, and the temporal setting is 1913.)
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* ''Literature/{{Dracula}}'', by Bram Stoker. This Dracula has a big, bushy mustache, which almost never is depicted in adaptations.
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* NamesToRunAwayFromVeryFast: Again: ''The Impaler'' and ''Dracula'' should be a hint.
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[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vlad_the_Impaler Vlad III]], Voivode of Wallachia, who, despite being similarly bloodthirsty, was more prone to impaling his enemies than to biting their necks and drinking their blood.
All impaling aside, who's patronymic name was, in fact Dracula (at the time it meant, in Romanian "[[RedBaron Son of the Dragon]]"[[note]]Currently it means "Son of the Devil[[/note]]), is either a [[KnightTemplar Brutal]] but Fair Hero or a complete sociopath. His Nickname, 'Vlad the Impaler' came from his practice of Impaling. Which was when you shove a staff, hook, spear, stake, ect. and shoving it through a person's body and leave if there until they die. So... yes. Vlad was brutal.
Born in Transylvania in the winter of 1431, into the noble family of Dukes, Vlad was
Vlad was born in Sighișoara, Transylvania (part of Romania), on December 1st, 1431 to Vlad II Dracul, future Voivode of Wallachia. Vlad's father was the son of the celebrated Voivode Mircea the Elder. His mother is unknown, though at the time his father is believed to have been married to Princess Cneajna of Moldavia (eldest daughter of Alexander "the Good", Prince of Moldavia and aunt to Stephen the Great of Moldavia) and also to have kept a number of mistresses. He had two older half-brothers, Mircea II and Vlad Călugărul, and a younger brother, Radu III the Handsome.
All impaling aside, who's patronymic name was, in fact Dracula (at the time it meant, in Romanian "[[RedBaron Son of the Dragon]]"[[note]]Currently it means "Son of the Devil[[/note]]), is either a [[KnightTemplar Brutal]] but Fair Hero or a complete sociopath. His Nickname, 'Vlad the Impaler' came from his practice of Impaling. Which was when you shove a staff, hook, spear, stake, ect. and shoving it through a person's body and leave if there until they die. So... yes. Vlad was brutal.
Born in Transylvania in the winter of 1431, into the noble family of Dukes, Vlad was
Vlad was born in Sighișoara, Transylvania (part of Romania), on December 1st, 1431 to Vlad II Dracul, future Voivode of Wallachia. Vlad's father was the son of the celebrated Voivode Mircea the Elder. His mother is unknown, though at the time his father is believed to have been married to Princess Cneajna of Moldavia (eldest daughter of Alexander "the Good", Prince of Moldavia and aunt to Stephen the Great of Moldavia) and also to have kept a number of mistresses. He had two older half-brothers, Mircea II and Vlad Călugărul, and a younger brother, Radu III the Handsome.
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[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vlad_the_Impaler Vlad III]], Voivode of Wallachia, who, despite being similarly bloodthirsty, was more prone to impaling his enemies than to biting their necks and drinking their blood.
blood, despite what [[Main/{{Dracula}} modern vampire fiction will tell you]].
Allimpaling aside, shoving sticks into people aside Vlad III, who's patronymic name was, in fact Dracula (at the time it meant, in Romanian "[[RedBaron Son of the Dragon]]"[[note]]Currently it means "Son of the Devil[[/note]]), is either [[AlternativeCharacterInterpretation either]] a [[KnightTemplar Brutal]] but Fair Hero or a complete sociopath. His Nickname, 'Vlad the Impaler' Impaler', or Vlad Țepeș in Romanian, came from his practice of Impaling. Which impalement: to pierce with a sharp instrument.
Impalement was, and still is, one of the most gruesome ways of dying imaginable.[[note]][[{{Squick}} Vlad the Impaler usually had a horse attached to each of the victim's legs and a sharpened stake waswhen you shove a staff, hook, spear, stake, ect. gradually forced into the body. The end of the stake was usually oiled and shoving it care was taken that the stake not be too sharp, else the victim might die too rapidly from shock. Normally the stake was inserted into the body through a person's the buttocks and was often forced through the body and leave if until it emerged from the mouth. However, there until were many instances where victims were impaled through other bodily orifices or through the abdomen or chest. Infants were sometimes impaled on the stake forced through their mothers' chests. The records indicate that victims were sometimes impaled so that they die. So... yes. Vlad was brutal.
hung upside down on the stake.]][[/note]]
Born in Transylvania in the winter of 1431, into the noble family of Dukes,Vlad was
Vlad was born in Sighișoara, Transylvania (part of Romania), on December 1st, 1431 to Vlad II Dracul, future Voivode of Wallachia. Vlad's father was the son of the celebrated Voivode Mircea the Elder. His mother is unknown, though at the time his father is believed to have been married to Princess Cneajna of Moldavia (eldest daughter of Alexander "the Good", Prince of Moldavia and aunt to Stephen the Great of Moldavia) and also to have kept a number of mistresses. He had two older half-brothers, Mircea II and Vlad Călugărul, and a younger brother, Radu III the Handsome.
All
Impalement was, and still is, one of the most gruesome ways of dying imaginable.[[note]][[{{Squick}} Vlad the Impaler usually had a horse attached to each of the victim's legs and a sharpened stake was
Born in Transylvania in the winter of 1431, into the noble family of Dukes,
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!!Tropes related to Vlad III:
to:
!!Tropes related Applying to Vlad III:
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* RedBaron: Dracula, The Impaler
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* RedBaron: [[RunningGag Dracula, The ImpalerImpaler]].
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!!Vlad III in fiction (most of the Dracula characters tend to also be him, as such this will ''only'' list depictions that are actually supposed to be/explicitly based off of Vlad III):
to:
!!Vlad III in fiction (most of the Dracula characters tend to also be him, as such this will ''only'' list depictions that are actually supposed to be/explicitly be Vlad III, or explicitly based off of Vlad III):
him):
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* In a light novel from Franchise/TypeMoon, ''[[LightNovel/FateApocrypha Fate/Apocrypha]]'', Vlad the Impaler is once again a Lancer class Servant. However, this [[YouDontLookLikeYou incarnation is a different character]] than his ''Fate/Extra'' counterpart, and is actually rather upset about the whole "Dracula" thing. He's still not a vampire, as within the established rules of Nasuverse vampires, though he has a Noble Phantasm that turns him into the common depiction of Dracula.
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* Hideyuki Kikuchi, author of the original ''VampireHunterD'' light novels, also wrote a novel about Dracula in Japan during the Meiji Restoration.
to:
* Hideyuki Kikuchi, author of the original ''VampireHunterD'' ''LightNovel/VampireHunterD'' light novels, also wrote a novel about Dracula in Japan during the Meiji Restoration.Restoration.
* In a light novel from Franchise/TypeMoon, ''[[LightNovel/FateApocrypha Fate/Apocrypha]]'', Vlad the Impaler is once again a Lancer class Servant. However, this [[YouDontLookLikeYou incarnation is a different character]] than his ''Fate/Extra'' counterpart, and is actually rather upset about the whole "Dracula" thing. He's still not a vampire, as within the established rules of Nasuverse vampires, though he has a Noble Phantasm that turns him into the common depiction of Dracula.
* In a light novel from Franchise/TypeMoon, ''[[LightNovel/FateApocrypha Fate/Apocrypha]]'', Vlad the Impaler is once again a Lancer class Servant. However, this [[YouDontLookLikeYou incarnation is a different character]] than his ''Fate/Extra'' counterpart, and is actually rather upset about the whole "Dracula" thing. He's still not a vampire, as within the established rules of Nasuverse vampires, though he has a Noble Phantasm that turns him into the common depiction of Dracula.
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* Badass
to:
* Badass{{Badass}}
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!!Tropes related to Vlad III:
* ArchEnemy: The Turkish Empire, his brother Radu the Handsome.
* AsskickingEqualsAuthority / AuthorityEqualsAsskicking: Lead his armies and was a very decent warrior to boot.
* AxCrazy: Allegedly, not only did he kill babies, and forced the parents to eat the corpse, but he dunked his bread in the blood of his enemies.
* Badass
** BadassMustache: His mustache may be a bit goofy to modern viewers, but there's no doubt he's badass.
** BadassInCharge / FourStarBadass: He was a three time three-time Voivode of Wallachia, which essentially translates as "Warlord" but more people view it as "WarriorPrince"
* BloodKnight
* TheButcher: He's called "The Impaler" for a ''very'' good reason.
* CoolCrown
* HeroWithBadPublicity: In Romania, he's one of their greatest cultural heroes. The rest of the world? A bloodthirsty tyrant with a penchant for shoving spears into people (though the latter part is true).
* HistoricalDomainCharacter
* HistoricalHeroUpgrade / HistoricalVillainUpgrade: He's got it as bad as NapoleonBonaparte.
* ImpaledWithExtremePrejudice: His favorite form of execution, which posthumously earned him his epithet, Vlad the Impaler (or Vlad Țepeș in Romanian)
* ImAHumanitarian: See AxCrazy
* {{Irony}}: The same Turks who beat and tortured Vlad when he was a child fell by his hand when he was an adult.
* FallOfConstantinople: Lived around this time and in the region, and was famous in his lifetime for successfully fighting against the very same sultan who took the city.
** He actually was present at the battle,although he was more interested in eliminating some contenders for his throne than anything else.
* LargeAndInCharge: [[ZigZaggingTrope Zig-Zagged]]: His actual height is mostly unknown, many depictions peg him at 5'9" while others depict him as 7'1 ''or taller''. In either case, he was indeed taller than most people at the time.
* TheMagnificent: Both of his titles. "Dracula" and "the Impaler" though they also double as a [[NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast name to run away from really fast]]
* RedBaron: Dracula, The Impaler
* ReligiousBruiser: He was a Christian fighting against the Turks.
* RoyalsWhoActuallyDoSomething
* UrbanLegends: There are so many on Vlad it can get a bit crazy.
* WarriorPrince
* ArchEnemy: The Turkish Empire, his brother Radu the Handsome.
* AsskickingEqualsAuthority / AuthorityEqualsAsskicking: Lead his armies and was a very decent warrior to boot.
* AxCrazy: Allegedly, not only did he kill babies, and forced the parents to eat the corpse, but he dunked his bread in the blood of his enemies.
* Badass
** BadassMustache: His mustache may be a bit goofy to modern viewers, but there's no doubt he's badass.
** BadassInCharge / FourStarBadass: He was a three time three-time Voivode of Wallachia, which essentially translates as "Warlord" but more people view it as "WarriorPrince"
* BloodKnight
* TheButcher: He's called "The Impaler" for a ''very'' good reason.
* CoolCrown
* HeroWithBadPublicity: In Romania, he's one of their greatest cultural heroes. The rest of the world? A bloodthirsty tyrant with a penchant for shoving spears into people (though the latter part is true).
* HistoricalDomainCharacter
* HistoricalHeroUpgrade / HistoricalVillainUpgrade: He's got it as bad as NapoleonBonaparte.
* ImpaledWithExtremePrejudice: His favorite form of execution, which posthumously earned him his epithet, Vlad the Impaler (or Vlad Țepeș in Romanian)
* ImAHumanitarian: See AxCrazy
* {{Irony}}: The same Turks who beat and tortured Vlad when he was a child fell by his hand when he was an adult.
* FallOfConstantinople: Lived around this time and in the region, and was famous in his lifetime for successfully fighting against the very same sultan who took the city.
** He actually was present at the battle,although he was more interested in eliminating some contenders for his throne than anything else.
* LargeAndInCharge: [[ZigZaggingTrope Zig-Zagged]]: His actual height is mostly unknown, many depictions peg him at 5'9" while others depict him as 7'1 ''or taller''. In either case, he was indeed taller than most people at the time.
* TheMagnificent: Both of his titles. "Dracula" and "the Impaler" though they also double as a [[NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast name to run away from really fast]]
* RedBaron: Dracula, The Impaler
* ReligiousBruiser: He was a Christian fighting against the Turks.
* RoyalsWhoActuallyDoSomething
* UrbanLegends: There are so many on Vlad it can get a bit crazy.
* WarriorPrince
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Fact correction: Bram Stoker\'s fictional character of Dracula is not based on the historical Vlad Dracula. I gave more details on the discussion page
.
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So, everyone knows about Dracula, bloodsucking vampire and all that? However, the man, the myth, the legend that the Lord of the Vampires is based on is not only worse than Dracula, but way more {{Badass}}.
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We don\'t trope real persons.
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!!Tropes related to Vlad III:
* ArchEnemy: The Turkish Empire, his brother Radu the Handsome.
* AsskickingEqualsAuthority / AuthorityEqualsAsskicking: Lead his armies and was a very decent warrior to boot.
* AxCrazy: Allegedly, not only did he kill babies, and forced the parents to eat the corpse, but he dunked his bread in the blood of his enemies.
* Badass
** BadassMustache: His mustache may be a bit goofy to modern viewers, but there's no doubt he's badass.
** BadassInCharge / FourStarBadass: He was a three time three-time Voivode of Wallachia, which essentially translates as "Warlord" but more people view it as "WarriorPrince"
* BloodKnight
* TheButcher: He's called "The Impaler" for a ''very'' good reason.
* CoolCrown
* HeroWithBadPublicity: In Romania, he's one of their greatest cultural heroes. The rest of the world? A bloodthirsty tyrant with a penchant for shoving spears into people (though the latter part is true).
* HistoricalDomainCharacter
* HistoricalHeroUpgrade / HistoricalVillainUpgrade: He's got it as bad as NapoleonBonaparte.
* ImpaledWithExtremePrejudice: His favorite form of execution, which posthumously earned him his epithet, Vlad the Impaler (or Vlad Țepeș in Romanian)
* ImAHumanitarian: See AxCrazy
* {{Irony}}: The same Turks who beat and tortured Vlad when he was a child fell by his hand when he was an adult.
* FallOfConstantinople: Lived around this time and in the region, and was famous in his lifetime for successfully fighting against the very same sultan who took the city.
** He actually was present at the battle,although he was more interested in eliminating some contenders for his throne than anything else.
* LargeAndInCharge: [[ZigZaggingTrope Zig-Zagged]]: His actual height is mostly unknown, many depictions peg him at 5'9" while others depict him as 7'1 ''or taller''. In either case, he was indeed taller than most people at the time.
* TheMagnificent: Both of his titles. "Dracula" and "the Impaler" though they also double as a [[NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast name to run away from really fast]]
* RedBaron: Dracula, The Impaler
* ReligiousBruiser: He was a Christian fighting against the Turks.
* RoyalsWhoActuallyDoSomething
* UrbanLegends: There are so many on Vlad it can get a bit crazy.
* WarriorPrince
to:
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* ''Franchise/{{Castlevania}}'' is one of the more well known video game series featuring Dracula, in this case as the EvilOverlord BigBad and sworn enemy of the [[BadassFamily Belmont clan]]. The series also features many elements of the Dracula mythology, including:
** The alias "Alucard" being used, in this version by Dracula's [[{{Dhampyr}} half-vampire son]] Adrian.
** Quincy Morris becomes a relative of the Belmont clan. Morris's son John and grandson Jonathan are even the protagonists in ''[[VideoGame/CastlevaniaBloodlines Bloodlines]]'' and ''[[VideoGame/CastlevaniaPortraitOfRuin Portrait of Ruin]]'', respectively.
** Dracula has been made to look like Creator/BelaLugosi, Creator/GaryOldman, and Music/RobZombie, depending on the game.
** ''VideoGame/CastlevaniaLamentOfInnocence'' serves as a spin on Dracula's OriginsEpisode: [[spoiler:instead of Vlad Tepes, Dracula is the fictional Crusader Mathias Cronqvist, former friend of the Belmonts.]]
** The ''VideoGame/CastlevaniaLordsOfShadow'' AlternateContinuity has another take on Dracula's OriginsEpisode [[spoiler:with founder of the Belmont clan, Gabriel Belmont, becoming Dracula.]]
*** ''VideoGame/CastlevaniaLordsOfShadow2'' even lets you play the entire game as him.
** The alias "Alucard" being used, in this version by Dracula's [[{{Dhampyr}} half-vampire son]] Adrian.
** Quincy Morris becomes a relative of the Belmont clan. Morris's son John and grandson Jonathan are even the protagonists in ''[[VideoGame/CastlevaniaBloodlines Bloodlines]]'' and ''[[VideoGame/CastlevaniaPortraitOfRuin Portrait of Ruin]]'', respectively.
** Dracula has been made to look like Creator/BelaLugosi, Creator/GaryOldman, and Music/RobZombie, depending on the game.
** ''VideoGame/CastlevaniaLamentOfInnocence'' serves as a spin on Dracula's OriginsEpisode: [[spoiler:instead of Vlad Tepes, Dracula is the fictional Crusader Mathias Cronqvist, former friend of the Belmonts.]]
** The ''VideoGame/CastlevaniaLordsOfShadow'' AlternateContinuity has another take on Dracula's OriginsEpisode [[spoiler:with founder of the Belmont clan, Gabriel Belmont, becoming Dracula.]]
*** ''VideoGame/CastlevaniaLordsOfShadow2'' even lets you play the entire game as him.
to:
* ''Franchise/{{Castlevania}}'' is one of the more well known video game series featuring Dracula, in this case as the EvilOverlord BigBad and sworn enemy of the [[BadassFamily Belmont clan]]. The series also features many elements of the Dracula mythology, including:
** The alias "Alucard" being used, in this version by Dracula's [[{{Dhampyr}} half-vampire son]] Adrian.
** Quincy Morris becomes a relative of the Belmont clan. Morris's son John and grandson Jonathan are even the protagonists in ''[[VideoGame/CastlevaniaBloodlines Bloodlines]]'' and ''[[VideoGame/CastlevaniaPortraitOfRuin Portrait of Ruin]]'', respectively.
** Dracula has been made to look like Creator/BelaLugosi, Creator/GaryOldman, and Music/RobZombie, depending on the game.
**''VideoGame/CastlevaniaLamentOfInnocence'' serves as a spin on Dracula's OriginsEpisode: [[spoiler:instead instead of Vlad Tepes, Dracula is [[spoiler: the fictional Crusader Mathias Cronqvist, former friend of the Belmonts.]]
** The ''VideoGame/CastlevaniaLordsOfShadow'' AlternateContinuity has another take on Dracula's OriginsEpisode [[spoiler:with founder]] However, this character is partially ''named'' after a real person who spread inflated tales of the Belmont clan, Gabriel Belmont, becoming Dracula.]]
*** ''VideoGame/CastlevaniaLordsOfShadow2'' even lets you play the entire game as him.Vlad III's harsh rule: Matthias Corvinus.
** The alias "Alucard" being used, in this version by Dracula's [[{{Dhampyr}} half-vampire son]] Adrian.
** Quincy Morris becomes a relative of the Belmont clan. Morris's son John and grandson Jonathan are even the protagonists in ''[[VideoGame/CastlevaniaBloodlines Bloodlines]]'' and ''[[VideoGame/CastlevaniaPortraitOfRuin Portrait of Ruin]]'', respectively.
** Dracula has been made to look like Creator/BelaLugosi, Creator/GaryOldman, and Music/RobZombie, depending on the game.
**
** The ''VideoGame/CastlevaniaLordsOfShadow'' AlternateContinuity has another take on Dracula's OriginsEpisode [[spoiler:with founder
*** ''VideoGame/CastlevaniaLordsOfShadow2'' even lets you play the entire game as him.
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[[folder: Fan Fiction]]
[[/folder]]
[[/folder]]
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Vlad was born in Sighișoara, Transylvania (part of Romania), on December 1st, 1431 to Vlad II Dracul, future Voivode of Wallachia. Vlad's father was the son of the celebrated Voivode Mircea the Elder. His mother is unknown, though at the time his father is believed to have been married to Princess Cneajna of Moldavia (eldest daughter of Alexander "the Good", Prince of Moldavia and aunt to Stephen the Great of Moldavia) and also to have kept a number of mistresses.[1] He had two older half-brothers, Mircea II and Vlad Călugărul, and a younger brother, Radu III the Handsome.
to:
Vlad was born in Sighișoara, Transylvania (part of Romania), on December 1st, 1431 to Vlad II Dracul, future Voivode of Wallachia. Vlad's father was the son of the celebrated Voivode Mircea the Elder. His mother is unknown, though at the time his father is believed to have been married to Princess Cneajna of Moldavia (eldest daughter of Alexander "the Good", Prince of Moldavia and aunt to Stephen the Great of Moldavia) and also to have kept a number of mistresses.[1] He had two older half-brothers, Mircea II and Vlad Călugărul, and a younger brother, Radu III the Handsome.
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[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vlad_The_Impaler Vlad III]], Voivode of Wallachia, who, despite being similarly bloodthirsty, was more prone to impaling his enemies than to biting their necks and drinking their blood.
to:
[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vlad_The_Impaler org/wiki/Vlad_the_Impaler Vlad III]], Voivode of Wallachia, who, despite being similarly bloodthirsty, was more prone to impaling his enemies than to biting their necks and drinking their blood.
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[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vlad_III_Dracula Vlad III]], Voivode of Wallachia, who, despite being similarly bloodthirsty, was more prone to impaling his enemies than to biting their necks and drinking their blood.
to:
[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vlad_III_Dracula org/wiki/Vlad_The_Impaler Vlad III]], Voivode of Wallachia, who, despite being similarly bloodthirsty, was more prone to impaling his enemies than to biting their necks and drinking their blood.
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None
Changed line(s) 4,5 (click to see context) from:
So...like, everyone knows about Dracula? Bloodsucking Vampire. Normally, this really evil. However, the man, the myth, the legend that the Lord of the Vampires is based on is not only worse than Dracula, but way more Badass.
to:
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* ArchEnemy: The Turkish Empire, his brother Radu the Handsome.
* CoolCrown
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* HistoricalVillainUpgrade
to:
* HistoricalVillainUpgrade HistoricalHeroUpgrade / HistoricalVillainUpgrade: He's got it as bad as NapoleonBonaparte.
* ImAHumanitarian: See AxCrazy
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* TheMagnificent: Both of his titles. "Dracula" and "the Impaler" though they also double as a [[NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast name to run away from really fast]]
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* LargeAndInCharge: [[ZigZaggingTrope Zig-Zagged]]: His actual height is mostly unknown, many depictions peg him at 5'9" while others depict him as 7'1 ''or taller''. In either case, he was indeed taller than most people at the time.
* TheMagnificent: Both of his titles. "Dracula" and "the Impaler" though they also double as a [[NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast name to run away from really fast]]
* TheMagnificent: Both of his titles. "Dracula" and "the Impaler" though they also double as a [[NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast name to run away from really fast]]
Added DiffLines:
* UrbanLegends: There are so many on Vlad it can get a bit crazy.
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Added DiffLines:
[[quoteright:350:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/vlad_iii_1123.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:350:The man, the legend. Showing off his BadassMustache and [[CoolHat Crown]]]]
So...like, everyone knows about Dracula? Bloodsucking Vampire. Normally, this really evil. However, the man, the myth, the legend that the Lord of the Vampires is based on is not only worse than Dracula, but way more Badass.
[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vlad_III_Dracula Vlad III]], Voivode of Wallachia, who, despite being similarly bloodthirsty, was more prone to impaling his enemies than to biting their necks and drinking their blood.
All impaling aside, who's patronymic name was, in fact Dracula (at the time it meant, in Romanian "[[RedBaron Son of the Dragon]]"[[note]]Currently it means "Son of the Devil[[/note]]), is either a [[KnightTemplar Brutal]] but Fair Hero or a complete sociopath. His Nickname, 'Vlad the Impaler' came from his practice of Impaling. Which was when you shove a staff, hook, spear, stake, ect. and shoving it through a person's body and leave if there until they die. So... yes. Vlad was brutal.
Born in Transylvania in the winter of 1431, into the noble family of Dukes, Vlad was
Vlad was born in Sighișoara, Transylvania (part of Romania), on December 1st, 1431 to Vlad II Dracul, future Voivode of Wallachia. Vlad's father was the son of the celebrated Voivode Mircea the Elder. His mother is unknown, though at the time his father is believed to have been married to Princess Cneajna of Moldavia (eldest daughter of Alexander "the Good", Prince of Moldavia and aunt to Stephen the Great of Moldavia) and also to have kept a number of mistresses.[1] He had two older half-brothers, Mircea II and Vlad Călugărul, and a younger brother, Radu III the Handsome.
He impaled many of his own country's nobility because he felt that they had destabilized Wallachia. He also impaled thousands of Turkish soldiers as psychological warfare, all in the name of protecting the Christian kingdoms from the Ottomans.
Surprisingly, while German, Russian, Hungarian, and Turkish literature and folklore all portray Dracul as a monster, he's considered a hero in Romania for his opposition to both Hungarian and Ottoman conquest, being voted among the 100 Greatest Romanians as recently as 2006. (Compare RichardTheLionHeart, NapoleonBonaparte or UsefulNotes/GeorgeWashington.)
The exact length of Vlad's period of captivity is open to some debate, though indications are that it was from 1462 until 1474. Diplomatic correspondence from Buda seems to indicate that the period of Vlad's effective confinement was relatively short. Radu's openly pro-Ottoman policy as voivode probably contributed to Vlad's rehabilitation. Moreover, Ștefan cel Mare, Voivode of Moldavia and relative of Vlad intervened on his behalf to be released from prison as the Ottoman pressure on the territories north of the Danube was increasing.
After Radu's sudden death in 1475, Vlad III declared his third reign in 26 November 1476. Vlad began preparations for the reconquest of Wallachia in 1476 with Hungarian support. Vlad's third reign had lasted little more than two months when he was killed in battle against the Turks. The exact date of his death is unknown, presumably 31 October or the end of December 1476, but it is known that he was dead by 10 January 1477. The exact location of his death is also unknown, but it would have been somewhere along the road between Bucharest and Giurgiu. Vlad's head was taken to Constantinople as a trophy, and his body was buried unceremoniously by his rival, Basarab Laiota, possibly at Comana, a monastery founded by Vlad in 1461. The Comana monastery was demolished and rebuilt from scratch in 1589.
He tends to get a HistoricalVillainUpgrade even when ''not'' being made a vampire.
!!Tropes related to Vlad III:
* AsskickingEqualsAuthority / AuthorityEqualsAsskicking: Lead his armies and was a very decent warrior to boot.
* AxCrazy: Allegedly, not only did he kill babies, and forced the parents to eat the corpse, but he dunked his bread in the blood of his enemies.
* Badass
** BadassMustache: His mustache may be a bit goofy to modern viewers, but there's no doubt he's badass.
** BadassInCharge / FourStarBadass: He was a three time three-time Voivode of Wallachia, which essentially translates as "Warlord" but more people view it as "WarriorPrince"
* BloodKnight
* TheButcher: He's called "The Impaler" for a ''very'' good reason.
* HeroWithBadPublicity: In Romania, he's one of their greatest cultural heroes. The rest of the world? A bloodthirsty tyrant with a penchant for shoving spears into people (though the latter part is true).
* HistoricalDomainCharacter
* HistoricalVillainUpgrade
* ImpaledWithExtremePrejudice: His favorite form of execution, which posthumously earned him his epithet, Vlad the Impaler (or Vlad Țepeș in Romanian)
* {{Irony}}: The same Turks who beat and tortured Vlad when he was a child fell by his hand when he was an adult.
* TheMagnificent: Both of his titles. "Dracula" and "the Impaler" though they also double as a [[NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast name to run away from really fast]]
* FallOfConstantinople: Lived around this time and in the region, and was famous in his lifetime for successfully fighting against the very same sultan who took the city.
** He actually was present at the battle,although he was more interested in eliminating some contenders for his throne than anything else.
* RedBaron: Dracula, The Impaler
* ReligiousBruiser: He was a Christian fighting against the Turks.
* RoyalsWhoActuallyDoSomething
* WarriorPrince
!!Vlad III in fiction (most of the Dracula characters tend to also be him, as such this will ''only'' list depictions that are actually supposed to be/explicitly based off of Vlad III):
[[foldercontrol]]
[[folder:Anime and Manga]]
* Alucard from ''{{Hellsing}}'' is Count Dracula and Vlad III. In the manga backstory, he was portrayed as a KnightTemplar, fiercely loyal to God, but was disappointed when He did not descend after all his fighting. Feeling forsaken and knowing he lost it all, he became a vampire by sheer willpower, after sucking the blood of the battlefield before he was executed by the Ottoman Empire. Centuries later, he came to England to seek the woman he desired, Mina Harker, and was defeated by Abraham van Helsing and his group. After this second defeat, he became the [[HunterOfHisOwnKind faithful servant]] of Abraham's descendants for generations.
** In the [[Anime/{{Hellsing}} Gonzo anime]], this connection was merely implied with hints in episode 9 and 13, but supplemental material in the Japanese booklets confirm this. Although, his backstory might be different because his characterization was modified. From steadfast BodyguardCrush-like loyalty on Integra (and a BerserkButton on people betraying her or insulting her) with a deep respect for humanity like in the manga, he becomes more of a rebellious PoisonousFriend with his own agenda who keeps testing her (but he's still angry when she's seriously injured) and without regard for humanity as whole, exhibiting arrogance and superiority for being a vampire. The OVA is more accurate to the manga.
* ''ShamanKing'' has Boris Tepes Dracula, a descendant of Vlad the Impaler, the original Dracula. Not actually a vampire, but his family has used shamanic powers granted by [[BigBad Hao]] to take revenge on humanity, who treated them like vampires since the time of Vlad.
* In a light novel from Franchise/TypeMoon, ''[[LightNovel/FateApocrypha Fate/Apocrypha]]'', Vlad the Impaler is once again a Lancer class Servant. However, this [[YouDontLookLikeYou incarnation is a different character]] than his ''Fate/Extra'' counterpart, and is actually rather upset about the whole "Dracula" thing. He's still not a vampire, as within the established rules of Nasuverse vampires, though he has a Noble Phantasm that turns him into the common depiction of Dracula.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Comic Books]]
* ''Requiem Vampire Knight'' (or ''RequiemChevalierVampire'' in the original French) has a Dracula who's the ruler of the highest social class, the Vampires, on the world of Resurrection. Interestingly, they make lots of references to the man Dracula was based off and in this universe used to be; Dracula has something of an obsession with impaling and decorates his ship the 'Satanik' with stakes covered with the bodies of those who've suffered the punishment, and an impaling gun has the sound effect of 'Tepes!' whenever it's fired. He also has the mask of the HighPriest of the Archaeologists ''nailed to his face'', because the priest hadn't removed it as a sign of respect for the vampire king (and also because Dracula really doesn't like the Archaeologists): this pretty much echoes what Vlad allegedly did to a Turkish messenger who refused to remove his turban. He even looks like the original Vlad, down to the BadassMustache.
* In the indie comicbook ''ComicBook/DraculaVsKingArthur'', Lucifer, wanting to one-up God, sends vampirized Dracula back in time to battle King Arthur in order to destroy his kingdom.
* DCComics ''VictorianUndeadIISherlockHolmesVsDracula'': In which Sherlock Holmes is transplanted in the middle of the famous novel and helps the novel's protagonists hunt for Dracula.
[[/folder]]
[[folder: Fan Fiction]]
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Film]]
* The Universal Studios [[Film/{{Dracula 1931}} version]] starring Creator/BelaLugosi (Number 79 on Bravo's OneHundredScariestMovieMoments), adapted from a stage play adaptation he had appeared in, is the most famous. Modern interpretations of the character and the story are more often based on it than the [[FilmOfTheBook book]].
** A Spanish version was filmed at the exact same time and used the same sets, but at the same time featured extended/extra dialogue and scenes, as well as more elaborate camera work. It was also not subject to as stringent censorship standards and it's generally less [[{{Narm}} narm-y]], save for the title Character. It actually garnered a higher rating from several critics.
** The Lugosi version had several sequels: ''Film/DraculasDaughter'', ''Film/SonOfDracula'', ''Film/HouseOfFrankenstein'', ''Film/HouseOfDracula'', comedy spoof/crossover ''Film/AbbottAndCostelloMeetFrankenstein'', and a miniseries remake of ''[[Series/HouseOfFrankenstein1997 House of Frankenstein]]'' in 1997.
** Universal Pictures made a second adaptation of ''Film/{{Dracula|1979}}'' in 1979. It's based on the same play as the 1931 film was, and like Bela Lugosi before him, Frank Langella came to the title role via his success playing it on stage. This version presents Dracula as a much more romantic figure, particularly where his relationship with Lucy -- whose story function is swapped with Mina's -- is concerned, than the novel and previous adaptations did, presaging a similar rethinking of the character in ''Film/BramStokersDracula''. (Other changes: this doomed Mina is also Van Helsing's daughter, and the temporal setting is 1913.)
* Dracula appears as the main villain in the film ''Film/VanHelsing'', as part of a MonsterMash with FrankensteinsMonster, [[WolfMan The Werewolf]], [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking and]] [[TheIgor Igor]].
** ''Film/VanHelsing'' was originally planned as a direct prequel to ''Bram Stoker's Dracula'' (with Anthony Hopkins reprising his role as Van Helsing) to set up the doctor's history with the vampire, but it never panned out.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Literature]]
* ''Literature/{{Dracula}}'', by Bram Stoker. This Dracula has a big, bushy mustache, which almost never is depicted in adaptations.
* Hideyuki Kikuchi, author of the original ''VampireHunterD'' light novels, also wrote a novel about Dracula in Japan during the Meiji Restoration.
* NightHuntress does introduce Dracula in book 3. He prefers "Vlad".
* ''The New Annotated Dracula'' isn't, strictly speaking, a totally original work (it's just that, the complete text of the novel annotated) but it does take an interesting angle towards Bram Stoker's novel and its proceedings-- taking the statement in the beginning of the novel [[LiteraryAgentHypothesis that the story related is (mostly) factual and being related by a third party]] and building from there. Places where character names and origins have been changed, edits made in retrospect for later editions by the persons involved to make their behaviour a little more acceptable...
* In ''Literature/TheDresdenFiles'', Dracula is said to be the son of Vlad Drakul, a monster of enormous power. Dracula is a member of the classically vampiric Black Court, but according to Kincaid joined as an act of youthful rebellion. The book ''Literature/{{Dracula}}'' was commissioned by the White Court to Bram Stoker, to act as a manual to explain to {{Muggles}} how to kill Black Court Vampires. It was very effective, and nowadays only the most badass Black Court Vampires survive. Whether Dracula is among them is unknown; the book might have also been an account of Dracula's death, or might have simply used a powerful Black Court member as an example.
* ''Literature/TheHistorian'' by Elizabeth Kostova is a novel that has the actual Vlad Dracula as a vampire, using books printed with a signature dragon with the word "Drakulya" to entice curious historians into finding his grave and, thereby, himself so that he can make them his minions. In this version, he is essentially an eternally undead BadassBookworm. However, he's still evil.
* DavidWeber's ''Literature/OutOfTheDark'' makes some oblique references to Dracula, with a significant part of the AlienInvasion story taking place in the woods and mountains of Transylvania, and a local resistance fighter seems to take inspiration from Vlad the Impaler by impaling alien invaders on stakes as a terror tactic. [[spoiler:He actually ''is'' Dracula and finally gets ''really'' pissed at the end of the book, leading to a CurbstompBattle when he takes the fight directly to the invaders.]]
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Live-Action TV]]
* Went up [[spoiler: and won]] against [[Literature/TheArtOfWar Sun Tzu]] in Series/DeadliestWarrior.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Tabletop Games]]
* Count Strahd von Zarovich (of the legendary ''DungeonsAndDragons'' adventure and subsequent game setting ''{{Ravenloft}}'') started out as a renamed Count Dracula, drawing upon the movie portrayals more than the book. Similarities between the two persist to this day. To muddle the waters somewhat, though, the actual Count Dracula is used as a villain of the sub-setting ''TabletopGame/MasqueOfTheRedDeath'', where attempts are made to portray the character with Vlad III Tepes as a basis. As if to wring the most out of the concept, the accounts of Vlad III's infamy, taken to extremes, had in turn already been a large part of the basis for a non-vampiric villain of the main setting: Vlad Drakov.
** Interestingly, the character of Count Strahd was first sketched out as a villain in a standalone adventure module written in the early 80's. The release of the ''Realms of Terror'' campaign boxed set was the first, though, to detail his history and motivations in depth. As the campaign setting was released in 1990 and the ''Bram Stoker's Dracula'' film in 1992, this makes the movie version of the good Count OlderThanTheyThink.
* The ''TabletopGame/{{Warhammer}}'' Vampire Counts have ''two'' bloodlines modeled on versions of Dracula. The Necrarchs resemble the character's portrayal in Nosferatu, but for the closest match, the von Carstein vampires tend to dress exactly like Bela Lugosi, and live in huge haunted castles beyond the forest. The character of Vlad von Carstein is probably the closest match to Dracula; though he is long (permanently) dead in the main storyline, his vampiric offspring (first Konrad and now Mannfred) continue the family tradition. Interestingly, all three take on different aspects of the Dracula archetype. Vlad is an artist, philosopher, and a genuine romantic who reluctantly made his dying wife a vampire so as to not be separated from her, and is Dracula as a charming, seductive noble. Konrad is a bloodthirsty, sadistic butcher, with no sense of subtlety, art, or manipulation, but takes a fierce glee in battle, and so is Dracula as Vlad the Impaler. Mannfred, finally, is a sociopathic MagnificentBastard (though, as the current one, he has been suffering VillainDecay and is now something of a GeneralFailure) who indirectly caused the defeats of the first two to satisfy his own ambition, and is possibly the closest to Stoker's original portrayal of Dracula. As of this edit, all three of them are 'permanently' dead, but there may be other spawns of Vlad's out there.
* Interestingly, the ''IronKingdoms'' setting has a Vlad Tepes {{Expy}} that ''isn't'' a Dracula: Vladimir Tzepesci, the Dark Prince of Umbrey, complete with a spell called "Impaler."
* Steve Jackson's ''Car Wars'' had a car catalog that included a large American car with a spike on the front... 'Vlad the Impala'.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Video Games]]
* ''Franchise/{{Castlevania}}'' is one of the more well known video game series featuring Dracula, in this case as the EvilOverlord BigBad and sworn enemy of the [[BadassFamily Belmont clan]]. The series also features many elements of the Dracula mythology, including:
** The alias "Alucard" being used, in this version by Dracula's [[{{Dhampyr}} half-vampire son]] Adrian.
** Quincy Morris becomes a relative of the Belmont clan. Morris's son John and grandson Jonathan are even the protagonists in ''[[VideoGame/CastlevaniaBloodlines Bloodlines]]'' and ''[[VideoGame/CastlevaniaPortraitOfRuin Portrait of Ruin]]'', respectively.
** Dracula has been made to look like Creator/BelaLugosi, Creator/GaryOldman, and Music/RobZombie, depending on the game.
** ''VideoGame/CastlevaniaLamentOfInnocence'' serves as a spin on Dracula's OriginsEpisode: [[spoiler:instead of Vlad Tepes, Dracula is the fictional Crusader Mathias Cronqvist, former friend of the Belmonts.]]
** The ''VideoGame/CastlevaniaLordsOfShadow'' AlternateContinuity has another take on Dracula's OriginsEpisode [[spoiler:with founder of the Belmont clan, Gabriel Belmont, becoming Dracula.]]
*** ''VideoGame/CastlevaniaLordsOfShadow2'' even lets you play the entire game as him.
* ''VideoGame/MeltyBlood'' has a vampire called the Night of Wallachia. No, that's not just a fancy title, he's actually a night, as in the period of time between sundown and sunrise. He was an alchemist who was obsessed with stopping the end of the world that he predicted for the distant future. However, he was mortal and didn't have enough time to figure out the solution, so he made a DealWithTheDevil and turned himself into both a vampire and a recurring phenomenon (likened to a hurricane, something that just happens whenever the conditions are right) wherein he would materialize local rumors. The first place where his night occurred was Wallachia, giving him the shape and personality of Dracula, which seems to have stuck with him for future occurrences.
** Well, it's a bit unclear, since the manga adaptation says that his form in the fighting games is how he looked like before becoming a phenomenon. Then again, the {{Nasuverse}} [[FlipFlopOfGod has never been consistent to begin with.]] Incidentally, his appearance is a reference to ''Franchise/{{Castlevania}}'' - he's based off the concept art for Dracula in ''VideoGame/SuperCastlevaniaIV''.
** Interestingly, it's pretty conclusively stated that Vlad Tepes in the ''Nasuverse'' was ''not'' a vampire; rumors and legends of the vampire Dracula were just that: rumors and legends (although the Night of Wallachia appearing as a physical incarnation of those legends probably bolstered them quite a bit). A bit strange considering the heavy emphasis on vampires that ''VisualNovel/{{Tsukihime}}'' and its spinoffs take.
* In ''VideoGame/FateExtra'', Dracula becomes a Lancer class Servant, based on his other name Vlad the Impaler, in which his tendency to executing his enemies by impaling them with spears became the basis of his class selection as Lancer. Incidentally, he doesn't seem to be a vampire, since there's already Night of Wallachia for the Dracula stand-in and Vlad/Dracula's classic vampire attributes don't seem to match the established Nasuverse vampire attributes.
* Vlad Tepes, while presumably not possessing any special powers is a member of TheKnightsTemplar in ''VideoGame/AssassinsCreedI''. He's also one of the multiplayer characters in ''VideoGame/AssassinsCreedRevelations'' though he doesn't appear in person, having been killed by the Ottomans a while ago.
* Remilia Scarlet from ''[[VideoGame/{{Touhou}} Touhou Project]]'' is a vampire that claims to be the descendant of Vlad Tepes or the original Dracula. As every character (and fan) knows, this is an [[BlatantLies obvious lie.]]
* The final few areas in ''VideoGame/TheSecretWorld'' are set in Romania, where a army of vampires are trying to TakeOverTheWorld. Despite having been dead for centuries, Vlad Dracul is an important character in the backstory. [[spoiler: He was a vampire '''hunter''', and his followers are still battling his estranged vampire wife's minions.]]
* ''VideoGame/TheLastResurrection'' uses Dracula, alongside Hitler, as a servant of the main villain: Jesus.
[[/folder]]
----
[[caption-width-right:350:The man, the legend. Showing off his BadassMustache and [[CoolHat Crown]]]]
So...like, everyone knows about Dracula? Bloodsucking Vampire. Normally, this really evil. However, the man, the myth, the legend that the Lord of the Vampires is based on is not only worse than Dracula, but way more Badass.
[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vlad_III_Dracula Vlad III]], Voivode of Wallachia, who, despite being similarly bloodthirsty, was more prone to impaling his enemies than to biting their necks and drinking their blood.
All impaling aside, who's patronymic name was, in fact Dracula (at the time it meant, in Romanian "[[RedBaron Son of the Dragon]]"[[note]]Currently it means "Son of the Devil[[/note]]), is either a [[KnightTemplar Brutal]] but Fair Hero or a complete sociopath. His Nickname, 'Vlad the Impaler' came from his practice of Impaling. Which was when you shove a staff, hook, spear, stake, ect. and shoving it through a person's body and leave if there until they die. So... yes. Vlad was brutal.
Born in Transylvania in the winter of 1431, into the noble family of Dukes, Vlad was
Vlad was born in Sighișoara, Transylvania (part of Romania), on December 1st, 1431 to Vlad II Dracul, future Voivode of Wallachia. Vlad's father was the son of the celebrated Voivode Mircea the Elder. His mother is unknown, though at the time his father is believed to have been married to Princess Cneajna of Moldavia (eldest daughter of Alexander "the Good", Prince of Moldavia and aunt to Stephen the Great of Moldavia) and also to have kept a number of mistresses.[1] He had two older half-brothers, Mircea II and Vlad Călugărul, and a younger brother, Radu III the Handsome.
He impaled many of his own country's nobility because he felt that they had destabilized Wallachia. He also impaled thousands of Turkish soldiers as psychological warfare, all in the name of protecting the Christian kingdoms from the Ottomans.
Surprisingly, while German, Russian, Hungarian, and Turkish literature and folklore all portray Dracul as a monster, he's considered a hero in Romania for his opposition to both Hungarian and Ottoman conquest, being voted among the 100 Greatest Romanians as recently as 2006. (Compare RichardTheLionHeart, NapoleonBonaparte or UsefulNotes/GeorgeWashington.)
The exact length of Vlad's period of captivity is open to some debate, though indications are that it was from 1462 until 1474. Diplomatic correspondence from Buda seems to indicate that the period of Vlad's effective confinement was relatively short. Radu's openly pro-Ottoman policy as voivode probably contributed to Vlad's rehabilitation. Moreover, Ștefan cel Mare, Voivode of Moldavia and relative of Vlad intervened on his behalf to be released from prison as the Ottoman pressure on the territories north of the Danube was increasing.
After Radu's sudden death in 1475, Vlad III declared his third reign in 26 November 1476. Vlad began preparations for the reconquest of Wallachia in 1476 with Hungarian support. Vlad's third reign had lasted little more than two months when he was killed in battle against the Turks. The exact date of his death is unknown, presumably 31 October or the end of December 1476, but it is known that he was dead by 10 January 1477. The exact location of his death is also unknown, but it would have been somewhere along the road between Bucharest and Giurgiu. Vlad's head was taken to Constantinople as a trophy, and his body was buried unceremoniously by his rival, Basarab Laiota, possibly at Comana, a monastery founded by Vlad in 1461. The Comana monastery was demolished and rebuilt from scratch in 1589.
He tends to get a HistoricalVillainUpgrade even when ''not'' being made a vampire.
!!Tropes related to Vlad III:
* AsskickingEqualsAuthority / AuthorityEqualsAsskicking: Lead his armies and was a very decent warrior to boot.
* AxCrazy: Allegedly, not only did he kill babies, and forced the parents to eat the corpse, but he dunked his bread in the blood of his enemies.
* Badass
** BadassMustache: His mustache may be a bit goofy to modern viewers, but there's no doubt he's badass.
** BadassInCharge / FourStarBadass: He was a three time three-time Voivode of Wallachia, which essentially translates as "Warlord" but more people view it as "WarriorPrince"
* BloodKnight
* TheButcher: He's called "The Impaler" for a ''very'' good reason.
* HeroWithBadPublicity: In Romania, he's one of their greatest cultural heroes. The rest of the world? A bloodthirsty tyrant with a penchant for shoving spears into people (though the latter part is true).
* HistoricalDomainCharacter
* HistoricalVillainUpgrade
* ImpaledWithExtremePrejudice: His favorite form of execution, which posthumously earned him his epithet, Vlad the Impaler (or Vlad Țepeș in Romanian)
* {{Irony}}: The same Turks who beat and tortured Vlad when he was a child fell by his hand when he was an adult.
* TheMagnificent: Both of his titles. "Dracula" and "the Impaler" though they also double as a [[NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast name to run away from really fast]]
* FallOfConstantinople: Lived around this time and in the region, and was famous in his lifetime for successfully fighting against the very same sultan who took the city.
** He actually was present at the battle,although he was more interested in eliminating some contenders for his throne than anything else.
* RedBaron: Dracula, The Impaler
* ReligiousBruiser: He was a Christian fighting against the Turks.
* RoyalsWhoActuallyDoSomething
* WarriorPrince
!!Vlad III in fiction (most of the Dracula characters tend to also be him, as such this will ''only'' list depictions that are actually supposed to be/explicitly based off of Vlad III):
[[foldercontrol]]
[[folder:Anime and Manga]]
* Alucard from ''{{Hellsing}}'' is Count Dracula and Vlad III. In the manga backstory, he was portrayed as a KnightTemplar, fiercely loyal to God, but was disappointed when He did not descend after all his fighting. Feeling forsaken and knowing he lost it all, he became a vampire by sheer willpower, after sucking the blood of the battlefield before he was executed by the Ottoman Empire. Centuries later, he came to England to seek the woman he desired, Mina Harker, and was defeated by Abraham van Helsing and his group. After this second defeat, he became the [[HunterOfHisOwnKind faithful servant]] of Abraham's descendants for generations.
** In the [[Anime/{{Hellsing}} Gonzo anime]], this connection was merely implied with hints in episode 9 and 13, but supplemental material in the Japanese booklets confirm this. Although, his backstory might be different because his characterization was modified. From steadfast BodyguardCrush-like loyalty on Integra (and a BerserkButton on people betraying her or insulting her) with a deep respect for humanity like in the manga, he becomes more of a rebellious PoisonousFriend with his own agenda who keeps testing her (but he's still angry when she's seriously injured) and without regard for humanity as whole, exhibiting arrogance and superiority for being a vampire. The OVA is more accurate to the manga.
* ''ShamanKing'' has Boris Tepes Dracula, a descendant of Vlad the Impaler, the original Dracula. Not actually a vampire, but his family has used shamanic powers granted by [[BigBad Hao]] to take revenge on humanity, who treated them like vampires since the time of Vlad.
* In a light novel from Franchise/TypeMoon, ''[[LightNovel/FateApocrypha Fate/Apocrypha]]'', Vlad the Impaler is once again a Lancer class Servant. However, this [[YouDontLookLikeYou incarnation is a different character]] than his ''Fate/Extra'' counterpart, and is actually rather upset about the whole "Dracula" thing. He's still not a vampire, as within the established rules of Nasuverse vampires, though he has a Noble Phantasm that turns him into the common depiction of Dracula.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Comic Books]]
* ''Requiem Vampire Knight'' (or ''RequiemChevalierVampire'' in the original French) has a Dracula who's the ruler of the highest social class, the Vampires, on the world of Resurrection. Interestingly, they make lots of references to the man Dracula was based off and in this universe used to be; Dracula has something of an obsession with impaling and decorates his ship the 'Satanik' with stakes covered with the bodies of those who've suffered the punishment, and an impaling gun has the sound effect of 'Tepes!' whenever it's fired. He also has the mask of the HighPriest of the Archaeologists ''nailed to his face'', because the priest hadn't removed it as a sign of respect for the vampire king (and also because Dracula really doesn't like the Archaeologists): this pretty much echoes what Vlad allegedly did to a Turkish messenger who refused to remove his turban. He even looks like the original Vlad, down to the BadassMustache.
* In the indie comicbook ''ComicBook/DraculaVsKingArthur'', Lucifer, wanting to one-up God, sends vampirized Dracula back in time to battle King Arthur in order to destroy his kingdom.
* DCComics ''VictorianUndeadIISherlockHolmesVsDracula'': In which Sherlock Holmes is transplanted in the middle of the famous novel and helps the novel's protagonists hunt for Dracula.
[[/folder]]
[[folder: Fan Fiction]]
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Film]]
* The Universal Studios [[Film/{{Dracula 1931}} version]] starring Creator/BelaLugosi (Number 79 on Bravo's OneHundredScariestMovieMoments), adapted from a stage play adaptation he had appeared in, is the most famous. Modern interpretations of the character and the story are more often based on it than the [[FilmOfTheBook book]].
** A Spanish version was filmed at the exact same time and used the same sets, but at the same time featured extended/extra dialogue and scenes, as well as more elaborate camera work. It was also not subject to as stringent censorship standards and it's generally less [[{{Narm}} narm-y]], save for the title Character. It actually garnered a higher rating from several critics.
** The Lugosi version had several sequels: ''Film/DraculasDaughter'', ''Film/SonOfDracula'', ''Film/HouseOfFrankenstein'', ''Film/HouseOfDracula'', comedy spoof/crossover ''Film/AbbottAndCostelloMeetFrankenstein'', and a miniseries remake of ''[[Series/HouseOfFrankenstein1997 House of Frankenstein]]'' in 1997.
** Universal Pictures made a second adaptation of ''Film/{{Dracula|1979}}'' in 1979. It's based on the same play as the 1931 film was, and like Bela Lugosi before him, Frank Langella came to the title role via his success playing it on stage. This version presents Dracula as a much more romantic figure, particularly where his relationship with Lucy -- whose story function is swapped with Mina's -- is concerned, than the novel and previous adaptations did, presaging a similar rethinking of the character in ''Film/BramStokersDracula''. (Other changes: this doomed Mina is also Van Helsing's daughter, and the temporal setting is 1913.)
* Dracula appears as the main villain in the film ''Film/VanHelsing'', as part of a MonsterMash with FrankensteinsMonster, [[WolfMan The Werewolf]], [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking and]] [[TheIgor Igor]].
** ''Film/VanHelsing'' was originally planned as a direct prequel to ''Bram Stoker's Dracula'' (with Anthony Hopkins reprising his role as Van Helsing) to set up the doctor's history with the vampire, but it never panned out.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Literature]]
* ''Literature/{{Dracula}}'', by Bram Stoker. This Dracula has a big, bushy mustache, which almost never is depicted in adaptations.
* Hideyuki Kikuchi, author of the original ''VampireHunterD'' light novels, also wrote a novel about Dracula in Japan during the Meiji Restoration.
* NightHuntress does introduce Dracula in book 3. He prefers "Vlad".
* ''The New Annotated Dracula'' isn't, strictly speaking, a totally original work (it's just that, the complete text of the novel annotated) but it does take an interesting angle towards Bram Stoker's novel and its proceedings-- taking the statement in the beginning of the novel [[LiteraryAgentHypothesis that the story related is (mostly) factual and being related by a third party]] and building from there. Places where character names and origins have been changed, edits made in retrospect for later editions by the persons involved to make their behaviour a little more acceptable...
* In ''Literature/TheDresdenFiles'', Dracula is said to be the son of Vlad Drakul, a monster of enormous power. Dracula is a member of the classically vampiric Black Court, but according to Kincaid joined as an act of youthful rebellion. The book ''Literature/{{Dracula}}'' was commissioned by the White Court to Bram Stoker, to act as a manual to explain to {{Muggles}} how to kill Black Court Vampires. It was very effective, and nowadays only the most badass Black Court Vampires survive. Whether Dracula is among them is unknown; the book might have also been an account of Dracula's death, or might have simply used a powerful Black Court member as an example.
* ''Literature/TheHistorian'' by Elizabeth Kostova is a novel that has the actual Vlad Dracula as a vampire, using books printed with a signature dragon with the word "Drakulya" to entice curious historians into finding his grave and, thereby, himself so that he can make them his minions. In this version, he is essentially an eternally undead BadassBookworm. However, he's still evil.
* DavidWeber's ''Literature/OutOfTheDark'' makes some oblique references to Dracula, with a significant part of the AlienInvasion story taking place in the woods and mountains of Transylvania, and a local resistance fighter seems to take inspiration from Vlad the Impaler by impaling alien invaders on stakes as a terror tactic. [[spoiler:He actually ''is'' Dracula and finally gets ''really'' pissed at the end of the book, leading to a CurbstompBattle when he takes the fight directly to the invaders.]]
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Live-Action TV]]
* Went up [[spoiler: and won]] against [[Literature/TheArtOfWar Sun Tzu]] in Series/DeadliestWarrior.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Tabletop Games]]
* Count Strahd von Zarovich (of the legendary ''DungeonsAndDragons'' adventure and subsequent game setting ''{{Ravenloft}}'') started out as a renamed Count Dracula, drawing upon the movie portrayals more than the book. Similarities between the two persist to this day. To muddle the waters somewhat, though, the actual Count Dracula is used as a villain of the sub-setting ''TabletopGame/MasqueOfTheRedDeath'', where attempts are made to portray the character with Vlad III Tepes as a basis. As if to wring the most out of the concept, the accounts of Vlad III's infamy, taken to extremes, had in turn already been a large part of the basis for a non-vampiric villain of the main setting: Vlad Drakov.
** Interestingly, the character of Count Strahd was first sketched out as a villain in a standalone adventure module written in the early 80's. The release of the ''Realms of Terror'' campaign boxed set was the first, though, to detail his history and motivations in depth. As the campaign setting was released in 1990 and the ''Bram Stoker's Dracula'' film in 1992, this makes the movie version of the good Count OlderThanTheyThink.
* The ''TabletopGame/{{Warhammer}}'' Vampire Counts have ''two'' bloodlines modeled on versions of Dracula. The Necrarchs resemble the character's portrayal in Nosferatu, but for the closest match, the von Carstein vampires tend to dress exactly like Bela Lugosi, and live in huge haunted castles beyond the forest. The character of Vlad von Carstein is probably the closest match to Dracula; though he is long (permanently) dead in the main storyline, his vampiric offspring (first Konrad and now Mannfred) continue the family tradition. Interestingly, all three take on different aspects of the Dracula archetype. Vlad is an artist, philosopher, and a genuine romantic who reluctantly made his dying wife a vampire so as to not be separated from her, and is Dracula as a charming, seductive noble. Konrad is a bloodthirsty, sadistic butcher, with no sense of subtlety, art, or manipulation, but takes a fierce glee in battle, and so is Dracula as Vlad the Impaler. Mannfred, finally, is a sociopathic MagnificentBastard (though, as the current one, he has been suffering VillainDecay and is now something of a GeneralFailure) who indirectly caused the defeats of the first two to satisfy his own ambition, and is possibly the closest to Stoker's original portrayal of Dracula. As of this edit, all three of them are 'permanently' dead, but there may be other spawns of Vlad's out there.
* Interestingly, the ''IronKingdoms'' setting has a Vlad Tepes {{Expy}} that ''isn't'' a Dracula: Vladimir Tzepesci, the Dark Prince of Umbrey, complete with a spell called "Impaler."
* Steve Jackson's ''Car Wars'' had a car catalog that included a large American car with a spike on the front... 'Vlad the Impala'.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Video Games]]
* ''Franchise/{{Castlevania}}'' is one of the more well known video game series featuring Dracula, in this case as the EvilOverlord BigBad and sworn enemy of the [[BadassFamily Belmont clan]]. The series also features many elements of the Dracula mythology, including:
** The alias "Alucard" being used, in this version by Dracula's [[{{Dhampyr}} half-vampire son]] Adrian.
** Quincy Morris becomes a relative of the Belmont clan. Morris's son John and grandson Jonathan are even the protagonists in ''[[VideoGame/CastlevaniaBloodlines Bloodlines]]'' and ''[[VideoGame/CastlevaniaPortraitOfRuin Portrait of Ruin]]'', respectively.
** Dracula has been made to look like Creator/BelaLugosi, Creator/GaryOldman, and Music/RobZombie, depending on the game.
** ''VideoGame/CastlevaniaLamentOfInnocence'' serves as a spin on Dracula's OriginsEpisode: [[spoiler:instead of Vlad Tepes, Dracula is the fictional Crusader Mathias Cronqvist, former friend of the Belmonts.]]
** The ''VideoGame/CastlevaniaLordsOfShadow'' AlternateContinuity has another take on Dracula's OriginsEpisode [[spoiler:with founder of the Belmont clan, Gabriel Belmont, becoming Dracula.]]
*** ''VideoGame/CastlevaniaLordsOfShadow2'' even lets you play the entire game as him.
* ''VideoGame/MeltyBlood'' has a vampire called the Night of Wallachia. No, that's not just a fancy title, he's actually a night, as in the period of time between sundown and sunrise. He was an alchemist who was obsessed with stopping the end of the world that he predicted for the distant future. However, he was mortal and didn't have enough time to figure out the solution, so he made a DealWithTheDevil and turned himself into both a vampire and a recurring phenomenon (likened to a hurricane, something that just happens whenever the conditions are right) wherein he would materialize local rumors. The first place where his night occurred was Wallachia, giving him the shape and personality of Dracula, which seems to have stuck with him for future occurrences.
** Well, it's a bit unclear, since the manga adaptation says that his form in the fighting games is how he looked like before becoming a phenomenon. Then again, the {{Nasuverse}} [[FlipFlopOfGod has never been consistent to begin with.]] Incidentally, his appearance is a reference to ''Franchise/{{Castlevania}}'' - he's based off the concept art for Dracula in ''VideoGame/SuperCastlevaniaIV''.
** Interestingly, it's pretty conclusively stated that Vlad Tepes in the ''Nasuverse'' was ''not'' a vampire; rumors and legends of the vampire Dracula were just that: rumors and legends (although the Night of Wallachia appearing as a physical incarnation of those legends probably bolstered them quite a bit). A bit strange considering the heavy emphasis on vampires that ''VisualNovel/{{Tsukihime}}'' and its spinoffs take.
* In ''VideoGame/FateExtra'', Dracula becomes a Lancer class Servant, based on his other name Vlad the Impaler, in which his tendency to executing his enemies by impaling them with spears became the basis of his class selection as Lancer. Incidentally, he doesn't seem to be a vampire, since there's already Night of Wallachia for the Dracula stand-in and Vlad/Dracula's classic vampire attributes don't seem to match the established Nasuverse vampire attributes.
* Vlad Tepes, while presumably not possessing any special powers is a member of TheKnightsTemplar in ''VideoGame/AssassinsCreedI''. He's also one of the multiplayer characters in ''VideoGame/AssassinsCreedRevelations'' though he doesn't appear in person, having been killed by the Ottomans a while ago.
* Remilia Scarlet from ''[[VideoGame/{{Touhou}} Touhou Project]]'' is a vampire that claims to be the descendant of Vlad Tepes or the original Dracula. As every character (and fan) knows, this is an [[BlatantLies obvious lie.]]
* The final few areas in ''VideoGame/TheSecretWorld'' are set in Romania, where a army of vampires are trying to TakeOverTheWorld. Despite having been dead for centuries, Vlad Dracul is an important character in the backstory. [[spoiler: He was a vampire '''hunter''', and his followers are still battling his estranged vampire wife's minions.]]
* ''VideoGame/TheLastResurrection'' uses Dracula, alongside Hitler, as a servant of the main villain: Jesus.
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