Corvin Castle — Historical Castles , Romania, Amazing History,

The Corvin Castle (also known as Hunyadi Castle or Hunedoara) is the most enchanting Gothic-Renaissance castle located on the edge of the small town called Hunedoara in Romania. It is one of the largest castles in Europe and figures in lists of the Seven Wonders of Romania. Many say that Vlad the Impaler was imprisoned here during his exile.

History of the castle:

Corvin Castle was laid out in 1446, when construction began on the orders of Voivode of Transylvania John Hunyadi who wanted to transform the former keep built by Charles I of Hungary. The castle was originally given to John Hunyadi’s father, Voyk, by Sigismund of Luxembourg, king of Hungary and Croatia, as severance in 1409. It was also in 1446 that John Hunyadi was elected as the regent-governor by the Diet. Due to the need for heavy fortification at the time, the breath taking Corvin Castle was build with not only with double walls but also with bastions, and flanked by tall rectangular and circular tower. There is also courtyard, beautiful myriad windows and balconies, all of which evoke that fairy-tale castle atmosphere. The castle has three large areas: the Knight’s Hall, the Diet Hall and the circular stairway. The halls are rectangular in shape and are decorated with marble. The Diet Hall was used for ceremonies or formal receptions whilst the Knight’s Hall was used for feasts. In 1456, John Hunyadi died and work on the castle stagnated. Starting with 1458, new commissions were being undergone to construct the Matia Wing of the castle. In 1480, work was completely stopped on the castle and it was recognised as being one of the biggest and most impressive buildings in Eastern Europe.

Interesting facts:

Tourists are told that it was the place where Vlad the Impaler, Prince of Wallachia, was held prisoner by John Hunyadi, Hungary’s military leader and regent during the King’s minority. Later, Vlad III entered a political alliance with John Hunyadi, although the latter was responsible for the execution of his father, Vlad II Dracul. Because of these links, the Hunedoara Castle is sometimes mentioned as a source of inspiration for Castle Dracula in Bram Stoker’s 1897 horror novel Dracula. In fact, Stoker neither knew about Vlad’s alliance with Hunyadi, nor about Hunyadi’s castle. Instead, Stoker’s own handwritten research notes confirm that the novelist imagined Castle Dracula to be situated on an empty top in the Transylvanian Călimani Mountains near the former border with Moldavia.

In the castle yard, near the 15th-century chapel, there is a well 30 meters deep. According to the legend, this fountain was dug by 3 Turkish prisoners to whom liberty was promised if they reached water. After 15 years they completed the well, but their captors did not keep their promise. It is said that the inscription on a wall of the well means “you have water, but not soul”. Specialists, however, have translated the inscription as “he who wrote this inscription is Hasan, who lives as slave of the giaours, in the fortress near the church”.

In October 2001, Corvin Castle was featured in an episode of Fox Family Channel’s Scariest Places on Earth, where a family was sent overnight alone with cameras.

In February 2007, Corvin Castle played host to the British paranormal television program Most Haunted Live! for a three-night live investigation into the spirits reported to be haunting the castle. Results were inconclusive.

In 2013, the television show Ghost Adventures filmed an episode at the castle as part of their Halloween special. The castle has been also featured in the video game Age of Empires II HD The Forgotten as a civilization wonder.[7]

The final action sequence (climax) for the 2015 Bollywood movie Singh Is Bling starring Akshay Kumar was shot at the castle.

In 2016, beginning in April, scenes for Dragonheart: Battle for the Heartfire were filmed at the castle for months.

Vlad the Impaler:

Vlad III, known as Vlad the or Vlad, was Voivode of Wallachia three times between 1448 and his death. He is often considered one of the most important rulers in Wallachian history and a national hero of Romania.

He was the second son of Vlad Dracul, who became the ruler of Wallachia in 1436. Vlad and his younger brother, Radu, were held as hostages in the Ottoman Empire in 1442 to secure their father’s loyalty. Vlad’s father and eldest brother, Mircea, were murdered after John Hunyadi, regent-governor of Hungary, invaded Wallachia in 1447. Hunyadi installed Vlad’s second cousin, Vladislav II, as the new voivode. Hunyadi launched a military campaign against the Ottomans in the autumn of 1448, and Vladislav accompanied him. Vlad broke into Wallachia with Ottoman support in October, but Vladislav returned and Vlad sought refuge in the Ottoman Empire before the end of the year. Vlad went to Moldavia in 1449 or 1450, and later to Hungary.

Vlad was a voivode (prince) of Walachia (part of modern Romania). Surrounded by enemies that included the Hungarians, the Ottomans, his younger brother, and Walachian nobility, Vlad employed extremely cruel measures to inspire fear in those who opposed him. He earned his nickname by impaling his enemies on stakes.

Vlad the Impaler and the Corvin Castle:

The story tells that as punishment for Vlad’s reign of terror as the Prince of Wallachia in the 15 thcentury, he was imprisoned for an undetermined amount of time in the dungeon at Corvin castle.

John Hunyadi was military leader in Hungary, during that time period, so the story could be true. However, the story goes on to propose that Vlad was driven insane due to his treatment there, and thus became even more murderous upon his eventual release.

The castle has little standing as an inspiration for Bram Stoker. Stoker’s research confirms that he imagined the castle as being somewhere else entirely, and he probably even aware of the existing of the incredible Corvin Castle.

The good news for Dracula fans is that the dungeon where Vlad would have been held is open to the public.

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Originally published at https://historicalcastles.com on August 26, 2020.