King Charles III may be the current monarch of the United Kingdom, but that isn’t all that makes him famous.
Wait, the real Count Dracula?!
In addition to his affection for Romania, Charles is a direct descendant of Vlad the Impaler, the Wallachian king from the 15th century who is said to be the model for Bram Stoker’s fictional vampire Count Dracula.
The warlord’s nickname, Vlad Dracula or Vlad III, was derived from his preferred manner of death. However, it can still be argued that count Dracula is a fictional character.
When Vlad was in charge of the area that is now known as Romania in the 1400s, his cruel tendencies were rapidly made public. This of course relates to Viscri villages which are now popular with tourist.
According to legend, he has even utilized a forest of corpses with their heads impaled to scare and dissuade an invading army from attacking.
Although it is still debatable whether Vlad the Impaler actually served as the inspiration for Bram Stoker’s Dracula, we do know that he was a sick and terrible man who happened to be King Charles III’s great-grandfather.
Given that the bloodlines of the British royal family can be easily traced throughout all of Europe—even the Queen and Prince Philip were third cousins—it is not really unexpected that they are linked.
But Charles, 73, has undoubtedly emphasized the connection, even joking during a visit to Romania that “you could say I have a stake in the country.”
He claimed that when he first visited in 1998, the “unique beauty” and “amazing legacy” of the nation drew him in.
The monarch has since continued to visit Viscri, a small Transylvanian village where he purchased and repaired an 18th-century home.
A family tree shown in David Hughes’ book The British Chronicles seems to support previous claims that he discovered his connection to Vlad Dracula during his first trip in the 1990s.
Ah Yes, the European Ancestry.
The country’s travel agency, Romania Tour Store, outlined: “Prince Charles has frequently discussed his European ancestry, which includes being the great-grandson of none other than Vlad the Impaler, 16 times removed, through Queen Mary, George V’s spouse.
“Prince Charles has long been known to have a special affection for Romania, particularly the Transylvanian region.
He learned about his relationship with Vlad the Impaler on his first trip to Transylvania in 1998, and he is very proud of this relationship.
The company continued: “Due to his involvement in the area, the mayor of the city of Alba Iulia has requested to bestow Prince Charles the title of Prince of Transylvania in appreciation of his role as a famous ambassador of the Transylvania region throughout the world.
