Archaeologists restoring Tokat Castle in Northern Turkey have uncovered a long lost labyrinth of secret tunnels and dungeons where the real-life Dracula, Vlad III (better known as Vlad the Impaler), was believed to be held hostage.
In 1442, the ruler of the kingdom of Wallachia, Vlad II, embarked on a diplomatic mission to secure an alliance with the Ottoman Empire to defend Wallachia against an enemy army in Transylvania. Vlad II’s alliance was successful, but in order to guarantee his loyalty the Ottoman’s demanded that he leave his sons Vlad III and Radu under their control.
Both sons were imprisoned in the Tokat Castle where they built an extreme hatred for the Ottomans. Vlad III was regularly subjected to punishments such as flogging and likely developed his later sadistic taste for brutal executions after witnessing the impalement of other prisoners.
Years later, after he gained the throne, Vlad III is said to have retreated from a battle against the Ottomans, impaling and displaying 20,000 bodies outside the city of Targoviste, in Romania. Upon seeing the horrific display, the Ottoman forces retreated to Constantinople.
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