Transylvania Trips - Enjoy Romania with us
Bran Castle Museum: Dracula's Castle
General info
Nestled in the southern Carpathians, Bran Castle is a little over 30 kilometers from the city of Brasov, overlooking a narrow valley that leads to Wallachia. Its fame as a tourist attraction is due to the legend of Count Dracula, but if you are looking for Dracula, remember that he doesn't live here and almost certainly never did, although for a certain period the castle was part of his family's possessions.
Some say he was held prisoner here, others that this was the territory he preferred for his hunting expeditions. In any event, what you see has none of the shadowy atmosphere one would expect from the legends connected to Vlad Tepes, the prince who inspired Bram Stoker's tale. Instead, it looks like a fairy tale castle, with an elegant, graceful structure that blends Gothic, Renaissance and Romantic elements, a testimony to its historic past and the various functions it served over the centuries. Its white walls , made of rock and stones from the river that runs along the valley.
History
The original function of the castle was to house a garrison that had the task of surveying the mountain pass delimited by the Bucegi and Piatra Craiului massifs and the tollhouse that stood nearby. The current name comes from an old village that stood along the important trade route that connected Transylvania and Wallachia; until the middle of the 19th century it was used by merchants who sold wood, meat and cheese and paid a toll to bring their wares across. The first structure, of wood, was built in 1212 and took the name of Dietrichstein from its founder, the knight of the Teutonic Order Dietrich, or from Toerzburg, from the pass. The structure stood on a rock 60 meters high, and a viaduct connected it to the mountain, allowing it to survey the entire valley. A century later, when Transylvania was ruled by the Hungarian king Louis I d'Anjou, the castle was entrusted to the inhabitants of Brasov so they could use it in defending the pass and the important trading center. Assaulted by the Turks in 1370, it suffered enormous damage, and in 1377 was subsequently in stone and brick.
A classic example of Gothic architecture, it stood on three floors with a guard post at the top, two towers, a surrounding wall and an underground area used as a prison. The upper part of the wall had rectangular arrow slits, where soldiers in the permanent garrison could position themselves to shoot with bows and crossbows.
In the early 15th century, the castle fell under the domination of the viovode (or prince ) Mircea the Elder. In 1386 he had been named Prince of Wallachia by the council of boyars, and was a vassal of the Holy Roman Empire, which saw the region as a foothold to the Balkans and the Near East. After his betrayal in the alliance against the Turks, Mircea's Transylvanian territories were stripped away from him by the King of Hungary and lord of Transylvania Sigismund of Luxemburg, and to regain them, he was forced to pay heavy tributes. Passed down to his descendants, Bran Castle remained in their hands until 1440, when Wallachian domination ended and it became the domination of the viovode of Transylvania, Iancu of Hunedoara.
Gradually expanded with the addition of the Observation Tower and the Eastern Tower, which was equipped with special holes through pitch and boiling water were thrown onto enemies below, throughout the Middle Ages the castle played an important role as an outpost against the Turks, and withstood numerous invasions. Nevertheless, by the early 16th century, its importance was primarily commercial, and it was precisely during this period that glass was added to the windows. In 1498 it returned to the inhabitants of Brasov, who held it until the feudal system was abolished in 1848. The castle then fell into the hands of the Austrians, who reinforced its defensive structure during the war with Romania, Russia and Turkey (1877- 1878). For a time, the structure was used as a border post and held an Austrian garrison, then it gradually fell into ruins. By 1883, it needed significant restoration, and ornamental elements such as battlements and arcades were added.
Following the reunification of Transylvania and Greater Romania ( 1918 ), in 1920 the citizens of Brasov gave Bran Castle to Queen Mary, wife of Ferdinand of Hohenzollern, who the next year gave curt architect Karel Liman the task of remodeling the fortress into a summer residence. The artillery room was turned into the royal chapel and the arrow slits closed and transformed into windows. In the tower passageway, apartments were built for the queens ladies in waiting and her personal secretary, and a fourth floor was added. An elevator was also installed in the court well, which descended 60 meters down to a labyrinth of passageways connected to a tunnel that led to the park in the valley below. The castle was Queen Mary's favorite place to vacation, and she impressed her style and taste on the furnishing and decorations, which exhibit a deep love of local traditions and German and Italian baroque. Upon her death, the castle was inherited by her youngest daughters, Princess Ileana, who lived there for some time. During World War II, she set up a camp hospital near the castle and named it after "The Heart of Queen Mary". And in fact she actually brought a casket here containing the real heart of her mother. It remained in the castle for a short time in a niche of the old chapel, which today is commemorated by a plaque.
After the abdication of Michael of Romania in 1947, the castle was abandoned and fell into ruins. In 1956 it was restored and open to the public. Bran Castle and the surrounding territory are now administrated by the municipality of Brasov. More restoration work began in 1987 and was completed in 1993.
Photos
Attractions
Peles Castle Museum
Bran Castle Museum
Corvins' Castle (Hunyadi Castle) Museum
Harman Fortress
Sibiu Citadel
Sighisoara Citadel
Rasnov Citadel
Deva Fortress
Fagaras Citadel
Rupea Citadel
Brasov Citadel
Suceava Fortress
Prejmer Fortress
Putna Monastery
Sucevita Monastery
Voronet Monastery
Curtea de Arges Monastery
Cozia Monastery
Moldovita Monastery
Sambata de sus Monastery
Tours
One day tour (A1)
Brasov Citadel
Rasnov Citadel
Bran Castle (Dracula's Castle)
Peles Castle (Sinaia)One day tour (A2)
Brasov Citadel
Rasnov Citadel
Bran Castle (Dracula's Castle)
Fagaras CitadelOne day tour (A3)
Brasov Citadel
Rupea Citadel
Sighisoara CitadelOne day tour (A4)
Brasov Citadel
Harman Fortress
Prejmer FortressDracula Tour (B1)
Explore the Transylvanian lands in the search of Dracula's true story. During day 1 you will be visiting Rasnov Citadel and Bran Castle. In the evening Brasov old city will be presented to you. A special accommodation will be taken care of for you at a lodging that is a scaled copy of the Bran Castle. On day 2 you will explore Sighisoara's Citadel followed by lunch at a restaurant located in the home where Vlad Tepes was born and raised.
