Emily and Caroline dive into the history and legends of Bran Castle in Romania, often linked to Dracula. They trace its origins to 1377, when Hungary’s King Louis I authorized the Transylvanian Saxons to build a fortress on a high rock to defend a key mountain pass and serve as a customs point, with construction completed in 1388 and later ownership shifting among Transylvanian princes and the Hapsburg Empire. They explain how the castle’s modern fame surged after Bram Stoker’s 1897 novel Dracula—despite Stoker never visiting Romania—and how the character was loosely inspired by Vlad the Impaler, whose campaigns and alleged brief imprisonment near the castle fueled the association. The episode also explores Romanian strigoi vampire folklore, garlic-based defenses, St. Andrew’s Day traditions, and reported ghost stories and paranormal experiences at the castle today.

Sources:

https://www.history.co.uk/articles/vlad-the-impaler-7-gruesome-acts-by-the-man-who-inspired-dracula

https://www.britannica.com/biography/Vlad-the-Impaler

https://www.bran-castle.com/en/dracula/

https://vocal.media/geeks/jure-grando-alilovic-vampire

https://www.transylvaniaunveiled.com/blog/unveiling-the-strigoi---transylvanias-haunted-souls

https://dracula-castle.ro/visitor-information/